A man who admitted to accidentally shooting and killing his stepson during a family barbecue in a small southeastern Manitoba community almost two years ago has been sentenced to six years in prison.
Cory Davis sat quietly in the prisoner’s box Wednesday, looking down as members of Dylan Jones’s family got up to describe how the loss of the loving, selfless 27-year-old left them feeling isolated and wary of trusting other people.
But it wasn’t until Jones’s older brother rose to speak directly to him that Davis looked out at the courtroom gallery — and spoke back.
“Look in my eyes and tell me you’re sorry. Look in my eyes and tell me you never meant to hurt my little brother,” Nathan Jones read from a victim impact statement.
“I never did, man. It was all an accident,” Davis said, looking up at a man who said he once trusted Davis enough to bring him into his family circle, before a defence lawyer stepped in to end the interaction.
“You stole something that meant more than the world to me. Never forget his name, never forget his face,” Nathan Jones told Davis in a provincial courtroom in Winnipeg. “He had nothing but love for you. I can remember the feeling. All I can do is remember — I can never forget.”
Davis, now 45, pleaded guilty last year to criminal negligence causing death with a firearm and possessing a firearm while prohibited in Jones’s August 2023 death.
He also pleaded guilty to breaching an in-custody non-communication order by contacting Jones’s mother, who was his wife at the time of the incident. His sentence was jointly recommended by Crown and defence lawyers.
Sawed-off shotgun in closet
The events that led to Jones’s death on Aug. 1, 2023, began when the victim showed up for a family barbecue at the home Davis shared with Jones’s mother at the time in Blumenort, Man.
Both men had been drinking throughout the day, while Davis was intoxicated and had also used marijuana, an agreed statement of facts read in court said.
Around 7:45 p.m., Jones’s mother went outside for a cigarette, leaving the two men alone inside.
Jones was showing off a replica revolver starter pistol to Davis, and Davis then wanted to show his stepson a sawed-off shotgun he had in his bedroom closet — but didn’t check to see if it was loaded, court heard.
As Davis pulled out the gun, Jones reached for it while Davis was still holding it, court was told.
“Mr. Davis said, ‘Don’t do that,’ pulled the gun back, and the gun accidentally went off one time,” Crown attorney Kristee Logan read from the agreed statement of facts.
Davis said he believes Jones touched the gun, but he’s unsure how the trigger was pulled — and said his finger was not on it, Logan said. When Jones’s mother came back inside after hearing the loud noise, her son was on the floor and Davis was crying, saying he’d accidentally shot him.
Davis then called 911 and “sounded quite distraught during the call,” Logan said.
“I think we’re all on the same page. This is a terrible tragedy and this should not have happened,” Logan said, adding Davis has previous criminal convictions that resulted in courts telling him not to possess firearms.
“It goes beyond mere accident, what happened that day two years ago. He chose to drink that day, knowing that bad things happen when he drinks. He chose to keep a firearm in his closet, blind to whether or not it was loaded.
“He’s left loved ones with a lifetime of pain and mourning, and I would probably include him in that as well.”
‘You can hear the sorrow’
Defence lawyer Saheel Zaman said Davis had the gun for protection after being released from prison years earlier, and said he’s since realized he has an alcohol addiction he wants to get treatment for.
The lawyer also noted his client stayed at the scene, performed CPR and called 911 after the gun went off.
“You can hear the regret, you can hear the sorrow, you can hear how emotionally devastated the accused is” in that 911 call, Zaman said.
“He did everything properly after this tragic incident that he could in the circumstances. But he’s not a magician — he cannot bring somebody back to life.”
Judge Robin Finlayson described the case as “one of the greatest tragedies I have seen.”
“This truly was an accident. There was no intent to kill,” he said. “There simply wasn’t, and that’s what makes this a true tragedy, in my view.”
When given the chance to address the court himself, Davis told Jones’s family how sorry he was.
“And I hope someday you’ll forgive me,” he said. “I hope you find it in your hearts.”
A man who admitted to accidentally shooting and killing his stepson during a family barbecue in a small southeastern Manitoba community in 2023 has been sentenced to six years in prison.
