A man from Hove has been cleared by a jury of wounding charges after he stabbed a love rival.
Earl Martin, 32, of Salisbury Road, Hove, was accused of wounding Jay Henshaw with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Mr Henshaw, 28, needed emergency surgery at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton after the stabbing which happened in Harmsworth Crescent, Hangleton, at about 5am on Saturday 21 May.
Mr Martin told the jury at Hove Crown Court that he had been trying to defend himself when he stabbed Mr Henshaw 11 times with a Stanley knife.
He said that, helped by his pregnant girlfrined Zoe Garcia, he had taken two Stanley knives off Mr Henshaw as the pair fought.
He said that Mr Henshaw then tried to attack him with a bigger knife and the pair began fighting again.
Mr Martin said that he had used one of the Stanley knives to defend himself from Mr Henshaw who limped off to his mother’s flat in Harmsworth Crescent after the struggle.
Mr Martin was also clered of unlawful wounding.
