A coroner believes a man killed when he was struck by a car on a Christchurch road in 2017 may have collapsed moments before.
Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly
Richard James Johnson was run over at about 9.40pm on the night of 11 July, while lying on Huxley Street in the suburb of Sydenham.
The coroner, Bruce Hesketh, has found no fault with driver, saying Johnson had either tripped or had a medical episode, and the death was accidental.
Although no alcohol was found in Johnson's system, the coroner notes the 45-year-old was an alcoholic, and had had seizures in the past.
His family suggested he had been robbed and left on the road, but the coroner did not accept that.
The delay in releasing the coroner's findings was "regrettable but unfortunately unavoidable", Hesketh said.