Convicted of manslaughter at the end of his third trial, Paul Evans Gordon Gray was sentenced to 15 years in prison for having stabbed to death a defenseless man who was trying to protect his wife. This “near-murder”, motivated by a $40 debt, destroyed the life of the deceased’s spouse.
Posted at 12:12 p.m.
“I died that day. I gave up on life. I lost my apartment. I did not care. I wanted to die. My health collapsed. I lived on the street. […] In January, he had asked me to marry him. I lost everything that day, ”said Sonya Mihalick in a punchy letter filed in court.
“It took me six years, but I finally managed to give you the justice you deserve,” she concluded.
The sentence rendered Tuesday by Judge Lyne Décarie may put an end to a unique legal saga in Canada. Paul Evans Gordon Gray was indeed acquitted of murder by a jury in November 2016, then again in December 2018. Due to errors of law, the Court of Appeal then imposed a third trial at the end of which the man 43-year-old was convicted of manslaughter in December 2021.
A fourth trial is not impossible, however, since Paul Evans Gordon Gray has appealed the verdict.
PHOTO SUBMITTED IN EVIDENCE
It is at this place in Viger Square that Paul Evans Gordon Gray killed the victim
The crime occurred in the early hours of September 27, 2015, at Square Viger in Montreal. For a few days now, Paul Evans Gordon Gray had been texting Sonya Mihalick asking for a drug debt of $40. Accompanied by his girlfriend, the accused went to the square to meet Sonya Mihalick and her spouse Edwin Johnson.
Paul Evans Gordon Gray then confronted the woman about the money and then slapped her in the face. Without posing any threatening gesture, Edwin Johnson intervened by telling the accused not to attack his spouse. Paul Evans Gordon Gray then jumped on Edwin Johnson and stabbed him in the neck. A blow to the jugular which proved fatal.
PHOTO SUBMITTED IN EVIDENCE
Edwin Johnson, the victim
Questioned the same evening by his girlfriend, Paul Evans Gordon Gray told him that he had “stabbed a little” the victim [I stabbed him a little bit]. His girlfriend, Tamara Chandler, was also sentenced to 18 months in prison for complicity after the fact.
Narcissistic traits
Father of five children, Paul Evans Gordon Gray has a long criminal record. In the past 16 years, he has been detained for about 11 years, and has never been released for more than 18 months. According to experts, he exhibits narcissistic and antisocial traits.
Citing numerous aggravating factors, the Crown was asking for 17 years in prison with the obligation to serve half the sentence before being eligible for parole, while the defense was asking for a lenient sentence of five years in prison.
According to Judge Décarie, a 15-year sentence is necessary, since it is a “near-murder”, the most serious category of manslaughter. Among the aggravating factors, the judge noted that the victim was neither armed nor threatening, and was simply trying to calm the situation. In addition, the criminal then left the scene to flee the police, even going so far as to shave to change his appearance.
He has 11 years and 10 months left to serve due to time spent in pre-trial detention.
Mand Philippe Vallière-Roland piloted the trial for the public prosecutor, while the accused was defended by Mand Marie-Hélène Giroux and M.and Cynthia Payer.