AUBURN, Maine — Tuesday morning in Auburn, Bryan Peabody, 26, pleaded guilty to manslaughter after the stabbing death of 48-year-old Lawrence Kilkenny in Auburn last June.
Peabody was originally charged with murder but ended up taking a plea deal to avoid going to trial. According to witness interviews, Kilkenny made a homophobic slur at Peabody which caused a fight between the two men.
Peabody is being sentenced to eight years in state prison followed by four years of probation.
On June 3, 2020, Auburn police responded to the incident at 116 Hampshire St. shortly after 11 p.m.
Kilkenny was taken to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston where he later died.
The Sun Journal reported a witness told police Peabody came home from work that night and found Kilkenny and several other people smoking crack cocaine on the porch of Peabody's building. The fight began after Peabody asked Kilkenny to leave, the witness said.
