A teenager has been jailed for killing an innocent bystander with a single punch in Invercargill earlier this year.

The High Court heard that Tyrone Palmer, who was 16 at the time, was drinking alcohol while taking some LSD and cannabis on a night out in April.

He then got into a confrontation with 40-year-old Matthew Coley outside the Night 'n Day store on Esk Street, and punched him.

Coley was rushed to hospital but passed away from the injuries.

Palmer's lawyer called for home detention, but Justice Nicholas Davidson said that wouldn't have met the purposes and principles of sentencing.

He sentenced the now-17-year-old Palmer to 22 months in jail.