A former star football player with the University of Manitoba Bisons and Winnipeg Rifles (also attended the Winnipeg Blue Bombers training camp in 2009) was on trial for manslaughter and found ‘not guilty’ by a jury that deliberated for less than 2 hours.
Jeremy Botelho, 23, admitted during the trial that he delivered the single, fatal blow to 18-year-old Kelly Clay in April 2010. But he said he was acting in self-defence when Clay, a provincial-level lacrosse player, approached him aggressively on the dance floor.
The Crown argued Botelho was the aggressor, not Clay. The defence reminded the jury that the victim had alcohol, cocaine and marijuana in his system.
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