UPDATE: 11:20 a.m.

After less than a day of deliberation, a 12-person jury found Chad Alphonse guilty of manslaughter in the stabbing death of Waylon Jackson two years ago, but not guilty of murder.

The verdict comes after three weeks of trial in Kelowna Supreme Court, that saw more than 20 Crown witnesses testify. 

Alphonse was drinking at Jackson's home at 115 Gerstmar Road on March 11, 2016, decorating for the baby shower of Jackson's common-law spouse.

Later in the evening, Alphonse and Jackson began fighting, and Jackson hit Alphonse with a chair several times. When Jackson stopped hitting Alphonse, Alphonse got off the ground and stabbed Jackson three times with a folding knife, before leaving the home.

Alphonse insisted he had “blacked out” from drinking that night, and doesn't remember the stabbing.

His defence counsel argued he was too intoxicated to form the intent to murder, an argument the jury ultimately agreed with.

“They found there was not the intent to kill, there wasn't the intent to cause grievous bodily harm,” said Alphonse's defence counsel Terry LaLiberté.

“It was never contested that he inflicted the stab wounds that caused this man's death, it's all about intent.”

Alphonse will be sentenced for manslaughter after a Gladue report is made, likely within the next two months. A Gladue report goes into depth about the guilty person's Indigenous background, and how the person has been treated differently in Canada due to that background.

“That's because unlike any other Canadian citizen, we've put people on reserves and we've treated them like serfs and slaves for so many years,” LaLiberté said.

LaLiberté says he will be seeking a conditional sentence for Alphonse, a sentence that can be served within the community under strict conditions.

“There's no reason my client should be in jail,” LaLiberté said. “Locking another young Native person up under circumstances like this would be a tragedy.”

Alphonse has been in recovery for alcoholism at the VisonQuest Recovery Society for several months.

ORIGINAL: 10 a.m.

Chad Alphonse has been found guilty of manslaughter in the stabbing death of Waylon Jackson.

The verdict, which came down Friday morning, means the jury agreed with Alphonse's defence that he was too intoxicated to have formed intent in the March 11, 2016, death.

But the decision also means the jury did not agree with the defence contention that he was acting in self defence.

Alphonse and Jackson fought that night after a round of heavy drinking.

The 12-member jury began its deliberations Thursday.

More details to come.