Panhandler gets jail for one lethal punch

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CALGARY, Alberta, Sept. 23 (UPI) -- A Canadian panhandler who killed a man with one punch for refusing him 50 cents was sentenced to three years in prison in Calgary, Alberta.

Christopher Guthrie, 21, was given the sentence Tuesday afternoon, hours after pleading guilty to assaulting another man last October who refused him money, the Calgary Herald reported.

In sentencing on the manslaughter charge, Judge Bruce Fraser called Guthrie a bully for his attack on a 58-year-old rancher who refused his request for change.

Gregg Foran was hit with one punch in July, fell to the ground and suffered serious head injuries. He died nine days later.

Both defense and prosecuting attorneys agreed Guthrie could not have foreseen his punch would be lethal, the newspaper said.

Guthrie made a tearful apology to Foran's family for "causing them a lot of tragedy," the report said.