Man found guilty of manslaughter in Moncton casino manager's death
Michael Glaspy charged after assaulting Rodney Frenette in 2023 and will be sentenced in August
A Moncton jury found Michael Glaspy guilty Wednesday of manslaughter in the death of a casino manager who was fatally assaulted on the job two years ago.
Rodney Frenette died March 28, 2023, in a Moncton hospital, 24 days after being assaulted at a pub inside Casino New Brunswick.
The jury deliberated for about six hours starting on Tuesday evening to reach the verdict against Glaspy, of Riverview.
During the trial, witnesses testified about what happened in the early hours of March 4, 2024, when Frenette, 56, and Glaspy, 53, got into an altercation.
Manslaughter, a homicide that is not intentional, carries a maximum sentence of life in prison, and there is no minimum.
Court heard that Glaspy assaulted Frenette, who fell to the floor and hit his head.
Many of Frenette's family members were in the Moncton courtroom when the verdict was read at the end of the three-week trial.
His widow, Marie France Frenette, let out an audible sigh when the foreperson read out loud, "Guilty of manslaughter."
She began to cry and was hugged by Frenette's sister, Connie Frenette, who was sitting behind her.
Glaspy stood still in the prisoner's box and eventually turned to look toward his family in the gallery, as he lightly shook his head back and forth.
In her instructions on Tuesday, Justice Christa Bourque gave jurors the option of returning with a verdict of manslaughter, which Glaspy was charged with in April 2023, or the lesser verdict of aggravated assault.
During the trial the jury heard conflicting accounts of how the altercation between the two men unfolded, including whether Glaspy's actions were to blame for Frenette falling and fracturing his skull.
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In his closing statement, defence lawyer Gilles Lemieux argued that the case was "a constellation of what ifs," and that there were other factors that could have contributed to Frenette's death, like a fall he took in hospital during his recovery which became a point of contention in the trial.
A pathologist had testified Frenette died of blunt force trauma to the head and suffered a stroke.
'Our lives are forever changed'
Outside the courthouse, some of Frenette's family members said they were satisfied with the verdict of manslaughter.
"I'm very happy for justice for my wonderful husband," Marie France Frenette, who was married to Frenette for 35 years, said. "He deserved it so much. It's just wrong what happened to him."
The victim's sister, Connie Frenette, described her brother as a family man.
"He didn't have an aggressive bone in his body," she said. "In a matter of less ... than 30 seconds, he lost his life. And our lives are forever changed."
Bourque set Glaspy's sentencing hearing for August 13, 2025 when victim impact statements are expected to be read. Glaspy will be free on bail until then.
"We are going to try to rest, and heal and move forward and then get ready for the sentencing," Frenette's sister said.