A man will spend 18 months in prison after being convicted of manslaughter in the July 2020 death of a man in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.
B.C. Supreme Court Justice David Crossin said Daniel Haydon’s death was the result of a fistfight that broke out between Haydon and Luis Alberto Maulen, 53, on the morning of July 1, 2020.
Maulen claimed self defence for the Canada Day incident in which Haydon, 49, was stabbed twice.
“I conclude the accused used excessive force in the course of defending himself against this much larger man,” the judge said in a March 11 decision released March 22. “The use of the knife, in stabbing the victim twice however, was not reasonable in the circumstances.”
After Haydon died from his wounds, Maulen was charged with second-degree murder.
However, a jury found Maulen not guilty of murder, but guilty of manslaughter.
Crossin said critical evidence at trial consisted of a video that captured aspects of the confrontation, although not the stabbing. The main Crown witness was a Ms. Van Kalsbeek, a bus driver who witnessed the conclusion of the struggle.
The court heard Haydon had a reputation for violence.
“He was a drunk and a bully,” the judge said.
On that July morning, Maulen heard Haydon calling his name from an East Hastings bus stop. He crossed the street to Haydon.
Maulen had a knife used for carving but Crossin said there was no evidence he intended to use it as he approached Haydon.
When Maulen arrived at the bus stop, Crossin said, Haydon punched him. The punch to the head caused him to fall, court heard.
“The accused testified the knife came loose during the scuffle while on the ground,” the judge said. “The accused grabbed it as he thought the deceased was reaching for it.”
The judge said Maulen was terrified for his life and stabbed Haydon twice. Haydon got on his feet and stumbled back to the bus stop bench. Maulen walked away, knife in hand.
Van Kalsbeek testified she saw the stabbing as she pulled her vehicle to the stop. She testified to seeing Maulen walk away with the bloody knife.
Pathology evidence confirmed Haydon suffered two wounds: one on the lower left part of his abdomen and one on his upper left thigh.
“Both wounds were severe; both potentially fatal,” Crossin said. “He soon died from blood loss.”
The total sentence was 20 months plus six days imprisonment but Crossin credited Maulen with 66 days in pre-trial custody.
