Deaf News: Deaf man cleared of murdering Deaf actor Vitalis Katakinas

A Deaf man has been cleared of murder and manslaughter after an incident in which a Deaf actor died.

Deaf actor Vitalis Katakinas died one week after the incident, which occurred outside a London pub following a Deaf event in July last year.

Today, Matthew Powe was found not guilty of murder and manslaughter after claiming he had acted in self defence.

This extract comes from the Islington Gazette:

A Crouch End man accused of killing a deaf Shakespeare actor with a single punch broke down in tears as he walked free from court.

Matthew Powe was acquitted of murder and the lesser alternative of manslaughter at the Old Bailey jury on Monday.

The 30-year-old had told the court he was acting in self defence when hit Vitalis Katakinas – acclaimed for his performance in a deaf production of Shakespeare’s Love Labour’s Lost – at the White Swan Pub, in Highbury, on June 29 last year.

Mr Katakinas suffered severe head injuries and died a week later.

Read the story at the Islington Gazette here: http://www.islingtongazette.co.uk/news/crime-courts/crouch_end_man_cleared_of_murdering_acclaimed_deaf_actor_in_islington_1_3625519

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