Lawyer Gets 12 Years for Mistakenly Killing His Neighbor
Jonathon Edington was sentenced to 12 years in prison for killing his neighbor, who he mistakenly thought had molested his 2-year-old daughter.
The New York Times reports that Edington was sentenced for first-degree manslaughter. Edington had attacked Barry James in James’s home after his wife told him James had molested their daughter. Police had found Edington washing off the victim’s blood in a kitchen sink.
Fairfield, Connecticut police officers found no evidence to back up the molestation allegation. Edington’s wife refused to cooperate in the investigation.
Judge Richard F. Comerford Jr. said: “It’s a Shakespearean tragedy brought into the real world.” After the sentencing, James’s parents filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Edington’s wife, accusing her of prompting the stabbing and making up the abuse claim. A similar suit against Edington is already pending.
