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/ tr.durtiamregion.com THE CANADIAN STATESMAN, FEBRUARY 11,2004 PAGE 3 Durham man convicted of manslaughter [ Accused said he feared victim's 4iells Angels links : BY STEPHEN SHAW Staff writer WHITBY -- A 21-year-old Port Perry man lias been found guilty of manslaughter in the stabbing death of Jesse Gray during a post-prom field party in Uxbridge. A jury dismissed Cary Cleyndert's claims that he acted in self-defence jyhen he fatally knifed the victim eight times, including once in the heart. Mr. Cleyndert's face turned flush and he displayed no emotion from the prisoner dock as the verdict was delivered delivered at 5 p.m. Saturday. His lawyer later said his client was devastated by the jury's decision. "He was very surprised by the verdict. verdict. He has always insisted on his innocence innocence and was confident he'd be found not guilty," said Dirk Derstine. The eight-man, four-woman jury deliberated for three days before finding finding Mr. Cleyndert not guilty of second- degree murder but guilty of the lesser offence.of manslaughter, which is defined. defined. by law as an unintentional killing! Mr. Cleyndert admitted to stabbing Mr. Gray, 24, of York Region, repeatedly' repeatedly' during a confrontation at a Zephyr Road farm June 8, 2002. But his lawyer argued he was in a "death fight" and that he only pulled the knife to defend himself from a vicious vicious beating at the hands of Mr. Gray. Prosecutors Megan Allen and John Scott maintained the fight between Mr. Cleyndert and Mr. Gray was consensual, consensual, and that the accused created a contrived contrived "poor-me defence" to avoid a conviction for second-degree murder. Neither the Crown nor the defence suggested manslaughter to the jury as a possible verdict during closing argu- ' T ÏÇE m Cary Cleyndert awaits sentencing on a manslaughter conviction, which was handed down by a Whitby jury Saturday. ments. However, in his charge Justice Robert Clark instructed jurors to find Mr. Cleyndert guilty of manslaughter should they conclude that Mr. Gray provoked the accused by assaulting him. Mr. Derstine said the verdict could be viewed as a "compromise" decision by the jury. "They may have partially accepted both sides," he said. The parents and relatives of Mr. Cleyndert and Mr. Gray sat in opposite rows of the courtroom, and several wept as the verdict was read. A large number of . police officers were in the court, but there were no outbursts. "I love you guys all," Mr. Cleyndert told family members as he was being led away in handcuffs to be brought back to jail, where he will await sentencing. sentencing. John and Christine Gray, Jesse's parents, attended every day of the three-week trial. As the verdict was read, John Gray comforted his wife, who began to cry. John Gray politely turned down an interview request. "They need the time and support to deal with the tragedy of losing their son. Just like any other grieving parents parents who have lost a child to violent circumstances, they're experiencing a lot of emotions," said Durham Regional Regional Police Detective Chuck Nash, of the homicide unit. A date for Mr. Cleyndert's sentencing sentencing hearing will be scheduled Monday in the Superior Court. Unlike a murder conviction, there is no minimum sentence for manslaughter, manslaughter, and jail terms can range from time- served to, in rare cases, life imprisonment! imprisonment! Mr. Cleyndert has already spent 20 months in protective custody due to concerns for his safety. The victim's father and uncle are prominent Hells Angels, and there have been threats by other inmates directed at Mr. Cleyndert Cleyndert since his incarceration, his lawyer said. "There's a lot of concern about potential potential dangers to him," said Mr. Derstine, Derstine, adding that his client has been kept out of the general jail population. More than 100 members of the Hells Angels took part in Mr. Gray's funeral procession and during early court appearances Mr. Cleyndert wore a bulletproof vest and was escorted by heavily armed tactical support officers. Del. Nash said special security measures were taken to ensure Mr. Cleyndert's safety, but added that is often done in serious, high-profile cases. Det. Nash said he isn't aware of any threats to Mr. Cleyndert since his arrest. arrest. "That's never been brought to my attention," he said. Court was told a "rude comment" Mr. Cleyndert made to Mr. Gray's girlfriend, girlfriend, Mellissa Bell, led to the fatal altercation, which took place just after 4 a.m. near a stage at the annual organized organized bush party attended by 500 young people, many of them students of Uxbridge Secondary School and other Durham schools. According to the evidence, Ms. Bell and a girlfriend got into a verbal dispute with Mr. Cleyndert, who at one point spit on the girls in anger. "You're f dead. You just spat on Jesse Gray's girlfriend," one of the girls began taunting Mr. Cleyndert. Ms. Bell told Mr. Gray, who angrily angrily confronted Mr. Cleyndert, leading to the fight. Witnesses for the Crown said they saw Mr. Cleyndert return Mr. Gray's punches with underhand stabbing stabbing motions to the victim's body. Mr. Cleyndert insisted he wanted no part of a fight with Mr. Gray, who had a reputation around Uxbridge as being "a tough guy from a tough family." family." "I heard of the Grays before and I didn't want any problems with them. I heard they are not people to mess with, that they're Hells Angels," he said. He said Mr. Gray, who weighed 244 pounds and was high on cocaine, wouldn't accept his apology and "clocked" him with a punch to the head. Mr. Gray began pummelling Mr. Cleyndert in the head and he became tangled in his coat as he tried to fend off his assailant. He said he slipped on a beer bottle and feared being kicked in the head as he nearly fell to the ground. "Then I pulled out the knife from my back pocket," he said, re-enacting for the court how he drew a butterfly knife while falling back on a 45-degree 45-degree angle. "I wasn't trying to hurt him. I especially especially wasn't trying to kill the person. I just wanted to get away. He just kept coming at me," he said. "I didn't want any of this to happen... happen... I was scared I was going to get hurt really bad... It's a fear I never ever in my life felt... animal fear," he said. Like the jury, Justice Clark was skeptical of Mr. Cleyndert's version of the story. "I just find that frankly implausible," implausible," he said at one point in the jury's absence. Respect in spotlight among educators BY SHELLEY JORDAN Staff writer CLARINGTON -- A new initiative initiative is expected to alter the way staff interacts with students, the community community and each other says the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board. Character in the Workplace was launched Feb. 3 to help employees develop specific character attributes. "We're trying to promote healthy leadership," said Avis Glaze, director of education for the school board. "February is the month we focus on respect." In the spring of 2003, a cross-section cross-section of community representatives met to choose 10 character attributes they felt were essential to civic education. education. The attributes are: respect, responsibility, responsibility, honesty, integrity, empathy, empathy, fairness, initiative, perseverance, perseverance, courage and optimism. Each month, Character in the Workplace will focus on a different attribute. "It's a way of life," she said. "Frail as we are as human beings, it's difficult difficult to always demonstrate these abilities." Ms. Glaze says it's all about relationships, relationships, and because people spend the majority of their time at work, poor relationships in that environment environment can affect productivity, and spill over into their personal lives. "In places where they offer character character education, people said they feel safe. People say it's what they want to be," said Ms. Glaze. "We hope this spills over into the public." There are currently 100 character communities in North America. DURHAM COLLEGE CONTINUING EDUCATION •ifotmuenoi / <■4.1 >! 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