Four tram workers - including one from Bury - who have been accused of the manslaughter of a father-of-one will go on trial next year.
Jack Barnes, 29, from Hull, suffered a cardiac arrest after he was restrained by the “customer service representatives” who were monitoring anti-social behaviour on the Metrolink tram system.
Mr Barnes died in hospital on December 2, 2016 – less than two months after the incident in Manchester city centre which followed a kilometre pursuit from Victoria Station.
On Thursday, Paul Fogarty, 50; Stephen Rowlands, 67; Matthew Sellers, 29; and Brian Gartside, 59, entered not guilty pleas at Manchester Crown Court to the charge that they unlawfully killed Mr Barnes.
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Fogarty, of Monks Lane, Bolton; Rowlands, of Wearish Lane, Westhoughton; Sellers, of Heathfield Road, Bury, and Gartside, of Danesworth Avenue, Whitworth, were all granted bail with conditions.
Rowlands also denied perverting the course of justice by allegedly providing a false witness statement to Greater Manchester Police.
Mr Justice Goose set a trial date of January 20 next year.
The hearing will take place at Liverpool Crown Court and is estimated to last up to six weeks.
A pre-trial review hearing will take place on November 22.
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