A businessman has been jailed for two-and-a-half years for manslaughter after he chased a Birmingham student who was then knocked by a car and killed.

Christopher Gray, aged 21, was struck by a car on the Bristol Road as he ran away from Robert Lewis following a scuffle. Mr Gray, a University of Birmingham student, died three days later from his injuries.

Lewis, of Station Road, Kings Heath, Birmingham, had pleaded not guilty to manslaughter but was convicted by a jury at Birmingham Crown Court.

Judge David Matthews said there had been "physical contact" between the two men before "a spur of the moment response led to tragic consequences".

The court heard how Lewis - described by Judge Matthews "as man who liked to air his views forcefully" - had been driving near the Tesco Express store on Bristol Road, Selly Oak, in the early hours of October 23, 2004.

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British Gas has suspended 28 Solihull office workers after an investigation found staff were allegedly distributing pornographic emails.

The staff at Blythe Valley Business Park will face disciplinary hearings and could either be dismissed or receive written warnings.

Many employees, including some long-serving staff, were escorted off the premises after being suspended for alleged gross misconduct.

A spokesman from British Gas's parent company, Centrica, refused to confirm what the emails contained, adding: "It was material that goes beyond what colleagues within the business and our customers would deem acceptable."

However, despite claims by staff that the charges relate to "joke emails", The Birmingham Post understands that pornographic images were alleged to have been circulated.

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The boss of one of Birmingham's oldest metal-bashing companies has hit out at conservationists for "throwing a spanner in the works" by objecting to his plans to redevelop a prime Jewellery Quarter site.

Russell luckock, managing director of A E Harris, said he would consider moving the company to South Wales if he fails in a lengthy fight to gain planning permission to build flats, offices and shops on the firm's Northwood Street site.

His efforts to relocate the 120-year-old company to a more suitable site have been frustrated by city councillors and conservation groups who object to the amount of housing Mr Lucock wants to build on the A E Harris site.

They claim the scheme is out of keeping with the Jewellery Quarter Management Plan, which gives priority to preserving existing industry and encouraging new companies.

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Walsall, a town once derided as one of the ugliest in the world and "like Ceaucescu's Romania with fast food outlets", is in line for a #600 million revamp.

The Walsall Regeneration Company (WRC) said public and private sector investment would transform the town and help reverse the decline it had suffered since its industrial heyday.

They anticipate the creation of 15,000 jobs by 2015 with schemes to redevelop the town's Waterfront canalside area as well build extensive leisure, shopping and commercial facilities.

A "landmark feature" could also be created to straddle the M6, which runs alongside the town.

Read Thursday's Birmingham Post for more on these stories