Jury: killing not murder
Chad Alphonse found guilty of manslaughter in stabbing death of friend during night of heavy drinking
Chad Alphonse sat quietly in the Kelowna courthouse lobby with everyone else before the group of two dozen people was called into Courtroom 2 to hear the verdict in his murder trial Friday morning.
Alphonse, out on bail during his three-week trial for second-degree murder, then quickly slipped into the courtroom and took his place in the partially glassed-in defendant’s cubicle.
The clean-shaven First Nations man, 28, dressed in a dark sweater over an open-necked white shirt, stared straight ahead until the eightwoman, four-man jury filed in.
The judge asked the jury foreman how the jury found Alphonse on the charge of second-degree murder in the stabbing death of Waylon Jackson on March 11, 2016.
“Not guilty,” answered the foreman.
When asked how the jury found Alphonse on the charge of manslaughter, he answered: “Guilty.” The courtroom remained quiet. There was very little reaction from Alphonse, his lawyer Terry La Liberte, Alphonse’s mother or sister, the small crowd of civil servants who monitor the trials of First Nations people or the media.
The judge thanked the members of the jury for their service and excused them. They filed out. In all, the whole proceeding took less than four minutes.
Then followed a short conference involving the judge, defence lawyer and Crown lawyer about Alphonse being allowed to remain out on bail and the date to fix sentencing to be set for April 9 at 9:30 a.m. in Courtroom 1 of the Kelowna Law Courts.
Alphonse doesn’t have to attend that April 9 date.
La Liberte then approached Alphonse in the defendant’s box and told him to wait there until the courtroom cleared.
Over the preceding three weeks, court heard how Alphonse dropped by the Gerstmar Road townhouse of Jackson, his friend, on March 11, 2016, after a day of pruning work at a local orchard.
Jackson, 26, and his common-law wife had recently had a baby, and Alphonse wanted to celebrate with a night of drinking with Jackson.
Alphonse was teasing Jackson about something when things turned physically violent.
Jackson fought Alphonse to the floor, punching him and hitting him with a chair.
Alphonse reacted by producing a knife, slashing Jackson’s shoulder and stabbing him twice. The first thrust of the blade went into Jackson near the armpit, and the second pierced his chest cavity, cutting his left lung and left ventricle of his heart.
Jackson died after bleeding out from that second stab wound.
Police found Alphonse shortly after, a couple of blocks away from the townhouse, with the knife still covered in Jackson’s blood.
Alphonse’s lawyer argued Alphonse acted in self-defence and was too drunk to have intended to kill Jackson.
The Crown argued Alphonse’s actions were deliberate and purposeful and consistent with seconddegree murder.
Outside the courthouse after the verdict was delivered, Alphonse’s lawyer told the media that the jury “did a good job with a very difficult case.”
“This case was about people acting emotionally,” said La Liberte. “This wasn’t a murder. It was a tragedy. I have a nice young man as a client. It was a shock to his system. He’s as surprised as anyone this happened. It was supposed to be a celebration. Too much alcohol was involved and his friend ended up dead.”
La Liberte said the manslaughter verdict was the right one, although he pointed out the court really has no clear definition of manslaughter.
“Anything that is not first- or second-degree murder that results in death can be manslaughter,” he said.
“There is no intent to kill with manslaughter. There was lack of intent here because of the alcohol involved. There’s no doubt he (Alphonse) stabbed the man (Jackson). It was a matter of no intent.”
La Liberte also pointed out there is no minimum jail time for manslaughter.
As such, the lawyer sees no reason for Alphonse to go to prison.
“Locking another First Nation man away is not necessary in a case like this,” said La Liberte.
“The public will be served by a conditional sentence (house arrest) or probation. However, the final decision will be up to the judge.”
The judge will also have to consider the Gladue report now being prepared in the Alphonse case. Such reports are done for all First Nations people being sentenced to consider the offender’s background, any disadvantages suffered because of race and circumstances, and to take into account any reasonable alternatives to incarceration.
La Liberte said Alphonse has been enrolled in the Vision Quest program to treat his alcoholism for months and is a star student.