A student who plunged a knife three times into a classmate at Montbello High School in January 2005 was convicted today of manslaughter.
The victim, Contrell Townsend, 17, collapsed within seconds of the confrontation with Marcus Richardson, then 16.
A Denver District Court jury returned the verdict after beginning deliberations on Tuesday. They also convicted him of possession of a weapon on school grounds. Richardson had originally been charged with second-degree murder, but the jury’s verdict convicted him only on manslaughter.
Richardson faces up to 13-1/2 years in prison when he is sentenced on July 18th. He may also be eligible for probation. He will remain in custody until the sentencing hearing.
Richardson told jurors 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 only stabbed Townsend 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.”
The students who witnessed all or part of the confrontation had dramatically different stories on who initiated the confrontation.
Some said Richardson hovered over Townsend, provoking the fight. Others said it was Townsend who confronted Richardson.
To add to the situation, 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 street gang.
One witness, student Quanisha Myles, testified that Richardson told her he used to be a Crip “but I’m not a Crip anymore.” Richardson denied any gang affiliation or ever making the statement.
The defense portrayed Townsend as a troubled youth who had suffered from a long-term bipolar disorder since age 10. Psychiatrist Peter Mayerson, testified that he thought Townsend was in the grips of the manic phase of his bipolar disorder when the students clashed.
“To me, it sounded like he (Townsend) was completely out of control,” Mayerson said.
Mayerson said that that persons who are bipolar “often get very irritable, angry and get in many fights.”
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.”
She said that he was a very caring person and funny. Although he took medication, he didn’t suffer mood swings any more than the average teenager, she said.
Donna Moore, a Montbello teacher, said she worked with Townsend every day and she never saw any wild mood swings. On Jan. 4, 2005, she said she saw Townsend before the incident.
“He looked at me and smiled,” she said.
Moore said that she had spoken with Hall on occasion, and was told by Hall that although he was bipolar, his behavior was in check.
Two other witnesses called by the prosecution, Denver Police Officer Nelson Henry, and Monique McNeil, said Townsend was no troublemaker.
Henry, the Montbello resource officer, said Townsend was a very quiet student who never caused problems. McNeil described Townsend, who she had known for 12 years, as a young man who was “always telling jokes, making people laugh.”
But defense witnesses, many of whom went to school with both Richardson and Townsend, said Townsend was the aggressor who confronted and manhandled the lanky Richardson, who weighed 40 pounds less than Townsend.
One, student Veronica Davis, said the fight ended when Townsend backed up and said he had just been stabbed.
She said she felt Richardson had little choice but to defend himself.
“I know Marcus didn’t want to stab him because he ran after him (Townsend) to see if he was all right,” she said.
Another witness, Danielle Johnson, said Townsend walked up to Richardson and said, “Are you tripping?”
She said that triggered the fight – Townsend grabbing Richardson, body-slamming him several times and punching him as hard as he could.
Staff writer Howard Pankratz can be reached at 303-820-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com.
