One punch kills an obnoxious drunk.

All it took to kill Brian Euston was a single punch. That's the assertion that Jackson County Prosecutor Jim Kanatzar made Thursday morning when he announced that Stanford C. Griswold had been charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter in Euston's October death.

Euston, 24, was discovered at Westport Road and Mill Street around bar closing time on October 10. He suffered a severe head injury, but initially the cause of death was a mystery, with no witnesses coming forward. He died at Truman Medical Center two days later.

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Two witnesses told police that they were standing outside of America's Pub, when Euston -- whose blood alcohol level was .387, more than four times the legal limit to drive -- approached. Euston began bothering people outside of the bar and "getting in their faces" one witness said. The witnesses said they urged Euston to leave, but he refused. Griswold became annoyed and allegedly then threatened to knock Euston out. When Euston wouldn't leave Griswold and his girlfriend alone, one witness said, Griswold struck Euston once, and quickly walked away into the mass-bar exodus with his girlfriend. When Westport Public Safety officers arrived on the scene, Euston was bleeding from his mouth, and he was taken to the hospital where he was diagnosed with severe head injuries. He died October 12.

On Thursday, Kanatzar, with Euston's parents by his side, said the charge was manslaughter rather than murder because there was no evidence that Griswold intended to kill Euston. If convicted, Griswold faces one to seven years in prison.

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When Euston's mother, Kathy, was asked if she was surprised by her son's high level of drunkenness, she responded frankly. "You know, I was 24 years old once in Westport. I never had my blood alcohol checked," she said.

Kanatzar said Euston's extreme level of intoxication had nothing to do with the case.

"It's not relevant from a criminal culpability standpoint," he said.