The man who stabbed and killed Charles St. Jean in September 2018 was sentenced last week to life in prison with no chance of parole for 12 years.
Tyler Sels was convicted of second-degree murder in November 2021. He was also found guilty of aggravated assault after two other people suffered stab wounds. The trial started Sept. 29. A 12-member jury spent more than two days contemplating the verdict.
The stabbings happened during a celebration of life at a home on Levesque Street, off The Kingsway. They were honouring the life of a friend who had recently died.
Sels was staying next door, at the home of Theresa Grasley.
During the trial, different accounts of what exactly happened that night were provided by witnesses who testified.
It was made clear, however, that at one point, Sels was confronted at the door of Grasley’s home. Sels told the court he was surrounded by a crowd. He panicked and grabbed a nearby knife. When the crowd started throwing punches, he started stabbing to defend himself.
Sels, 24, will serve a two-year concurrent sentence for stabbing Martin and a concurrent six-month sentence for stabbing Marc-Andre Leduc.
Justice Dan Cornell handed down the sentence on April 21.
Sels is prohibited from owning weapons for the rest of his life, and he must submit a DNA sample.
