Bouncer jailed after man's death

A doorman has been jailed for nine months in connection with the death of a man outside a nightclub.

David Gilding, from Redcar, had been charged with the manslaughter of Michael Parkin, who died after a fight outside the Top Deck club in Redcar.

But his not guilty plea was accepted after Teesside Crown Court heard that doctors were unable to establish the exact circumstances of the death.

The 42-year-old admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Mr Parkin, 30, a steelworks welder, died of a head injury on 29 July last year.

Unlicensed doorman

But the court heard that although Gilding admitted punching him, it could not be established whether this was the fatal blow.

Mr Parkin, of Dunsdale, was ejected from the club after being involved in an argument with a group of women, the hearing heard.

Gilding, of High Street, Redcar, who was an unlicensed doorman because of a previous conviction for violence, punched him while he was in the street.

But the court also heard that an unidentified man had kicked Mr Parkin and put a plastic bag over his head.