A student who plunged a knife three times into a classmate at Montbello High School in January 2005 was convicted of manslaughter Wednesday by a jury so overcome by emotion that some members wept.
The victim, Contrell Townsend, 17, collapsed within seconds of the confrontation with Marcus Richardson, then 16, in the school cafeteria.
Richardson also was convicted of possession of a weapon on school grounds.
Denver District Judge Morris Hoffman denied defense requests that Richardson, now 18, be permitted to remain free on bond until his July 18 sentencing. He was led from the courtroom in handcuffs.
Friends of Richardson’s cried out as they heard the verdicts. Richardson’s father had to be restrained as he rocked back and forth and screamed at prosecutor Tom Clinton.
“What did you say? What did you say to me? What did you say to me, Clinton?” the father, also named Marcus, yelled hysterically at the prosecutor.
Clinton had said nothing. The outburst so shook jurors that some openly wept.
Just before they returned the verdict, the jurors sent a note to Hoffman showing compassion for Richardson.
“We … wish to express concern regarding the defendant being charged as an adult,” the note said. “Please explain this to us. As well, please take into account upon sentencing our concern over this defendant being incarcerated in an adult prison.”
The decision to charge him as an adult was made by the Denver district attorney’s office.
“A young man’s decision to carry a deadly weapon to school and use it to kill someone is extremely serious,” said DA spokeswoman Lynn Kimbrough.
Richardson, who has no prior criminal history, could face a sentence of probation to 13 1/2 years in prison.
Prosecutor Adrienne Greene declined to say whether she would seek prison time for Richardson.
“I think the jury struggled with the verdict, and, ultimately, I think justice was done,” Greene said. “I’m not surprised (by the verdict). I think it could have gone either way.”
The jury refused to find Richardson guilty of second-degree murder, sought by the prosecution. Such a determination could have resulted in decades in prison.
“We are thankful he was found not guilty of murder and found guilty of recklessness,” said Walter Gerash, one of Richardson’s lawyers.
Manslaughter means that Richardson “recklessly” caused the death of Townsend. Jurors and members of the Richardson and Townsend families declined to comment.
Gerash, defense attorney Craig Truman and Richardson had relied on a self-defense theory in hopes of an acquittal. To return a manslaughter verdict, however, the jury didn’t have to consider self-defense.
Richardson testified that he was repeatedly body-slammed and punched by Townsend and was surrounded by Townsend’s friends, who he said were associates of the Bloods street gang.
He said he stabbed Townsend only after Townsend placed him in a chokehold, making it impossible for him to breathe. He said Townsend’s friends flashed Blood gang signs and yelled “s-wooop” “s-wooop,” the Bloods’ “war cry.”
Students who witnessed the fight had dramatically different stories about who initiated it. Some said Richardson hovered over Townsend, provoking the fight. Others said it was Townsend who confronted Richardson.
Adding tension to the situation was the fact that Richardson was dressed in blue, the colors of the Crips street gang, while Townsend was wearing red and maroon, the colors associated with the rival Bloods gang.
One witness, student Quanisha Myles, testified that Richardson told her he used to be a Crip but had since dropped out. Richardson denied any gang affiliation or making the statement.
Sedgrick Myles, a Townsend friend and classmate, testified that on two occasions that day, Richardson tried to start fights with Townsend. He said the first was stopped by the school principal before it started near the school tennis courts. Minutes later, back in the school cafeteria, Richardson challenged Townsend a second time, he said. After the two wrestled briefly, Townsend pinned Richardson to a table. That was when Townsend was stabbed, Sedgrick Myles said.
The defense portrayed Townsend as a troubled youth who had suffered from bipolar disorder since age 10. Psychiatrist Peter Mayerson testified that he thought Townsend was in the grips of the manic phase of his disorder when the students clashed.
“To me, it sounded like he was completely out of control,” Mayerson said.
But that depiction was contradicted by Townsend’s mother, Linda Hall, and various students and teachers who knew Townsend.
Hall described her son as a “very quiet person who kept to himself most of the time.”
Staff writer Kieran Nicholson contributed to this report.
Staff writer Howard Pankratz can be reached at 303-820-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com.
