A jury found Glen Mayer guilty of first-degree murder Friday afternoon in the Superior Court of Justice in downtown Windsor, ending a trial that began June 9 before Superior Court Justice J. Ross Macfarlane.
Verdict and Sentence
The judge delivered his charge to the jury Friday morning, and the verdict came in around 4:30 p.m. A first-degree murder conviction carries an automatic life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years.
Mayer, 49, of LaSalle had pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the Jan. 20, 2024 early morning shooting of Bechara, 47, at Bechara’s Lakeshore home. Closing arguments were presented to the jury Thursday.
Prosecution and Defence Arguments
The defence portrayed Mayer as a devastated, intoxicated man acting in self-defence, while prosecutors argued he executed a plan to kill Bechara after discovering text messages on his wife’s cellphone that Mayer believed were evidence of an affair with Bechara.
Mayer testified he had been drinking all night, had no sleep, and was devastated by what he saw as the loss of his family. He said he went to Bechara’s home to confront him about the affair but never planned to kill him.
Evidence Presented
Before leaving his LaSalle home around 5:30 a.m., Mayer retrieved a gun and ammunition magazine from his gun safe. He sent Bechara text messages saying, “Hey it’s Glen. Everyone loses today,” and another: “I’ll speed up your karma. You should know better.”
The defence argued those texts were not threats but warnings to Bechara, who was a friend of Mayer’s, about his wife’s behaviour. However, the prosecution portrayed Mayer as a man who planned to kill Bechara from the moment he left his LaSalle residence and headed to Bechara’s home in Belle River.
Reaction from Victim's Family
Four women who indicated they were relatives of the victim declined to speak to the media as they left the courthouse, though one did say the verdict was a relief.
