BREAKING NEWS: Jack Merrilees 'not guilty' of murder
The jury had previously been told Mr Merrilees stabbed Mr Cornet three times "with severe force", one of which had piereced his heart.
It happened following a furious row between the pair after a booze-fuelled day out with Mrs Merrilees and Mr Merrilees girlfriend, Rebecca Beveridge.
The defence successfully argued that Mr Merrilees actions were out of self-defence and the jury found him not guilty of murder after five hours and fifty minutes of deliberations.
There were emotional scenes when the verdict was returned, with a tearful Mr Merrilees thanking the jury as he left the courtroom.
During the trial the defence painted a picture of Mr Cornet as a man prone to aggression, drawing attention to a number of past occasions when he had been violent.
See Thursday's Stratford Herald for the full story on today's verdict.