Fayette schools custodian helper is found guilty of manslaughter

Jury recommends maximum 20 years

for first-degree manslaughter

This from the Herald-Leader:

A Fayette Circuit Court jury on Tuesday found Brian Allen McGuire guilty of first-degree manslaughter in the death of Jose Daniel "Danny" Donato, a fellow custodian helper at Lexington's Leestown Middle School.

McGuire also was found guilty of unlawful possession of a weapon on school property.

The jury recommended the maximum sentence — 20 years in prison for manslaughter and five years for the weapon possession. Jurors recommended the sentences be served concurrently. McGuire would have to serve 85 percent of his sentence before being eligible for parole. Formal sentencing was scheduled for 1 p.m. Dec. 10 before Judge Kimberly Bunnell.

Leestown Middle School Custodian's Murder Trial Underway

According to court records in 2009 a witness said Brian Allen McGuire approached a fellow custodian in Leestown Middle School, shot him multiple times, and ran out of the school's cafeteria.

The shooting trial began this week with jury selection and initial testimony from school officials.

On day of his killing,

Leestown Middle School custodian was to be suspended

Defendant had asked for action by school

This from the Herald-Leader:
photo right, Brian McGuire; photo left Jose Donato:

Fayette County Public Schools officials had planned to suspend Jose Daniel "Danny" Donato from his job at Lexington's Leestown Middle School the same morning that he was shot to death at work, according to court testimony Thursday.

The plan, put into motion the night before the June 9, 2009, shooting, was for school system attorney Brenda Allen to write a suspension letter and take it to Fayette schools Superintendent Stu Silberman to sign; then school police were to serve Donato with the letter, Kiyon Massey, associate director for classified personnel in the school system's human resources department, said in Fayette Circuit Court.

School officials did not tell Brian McGuire what was to take place. McGuire's complaints about Donato were the motivation behind the suspension plan...

Alleged Shooter McGuire Surrenders in Missouri

This from WLEX:

The man wanted for the fatal shooting of a co-worker at a Lexington middle school Tuesday morning turned himself in to police in Missouri Wednesday afternoon.

Brian Allen McGuire, 27, (right) of Lexington, is suspected of killing Jose Daniel Donato, 38, (below) a fellow custodian at Leestown Middle School. The shooting happened at around 8 a.m. Tuesday inside the school, located on Leestown Road near New Circle Road. Police said there were no students in the school at the time of the shooting.

Lexington Police say McGuire called local police from a pay phone in Grain Valley, Missouri, which is near Kansas City. He was then arrested at about 2:15 p.m. EST. He is currently being held in the Jackson County, Missouri Detention Center. There is also no word on when McGuire will be returned to Lexington.

School officials and police confirmed that the school system had recently become aware of tension reported between McGuire and Donato prior to the shooting incident.

McGuire has worked for Fayette County schools since 2004, and Donato had been with the school system since February 2008.

Leestown shooting suspect still at large

This from the Herald-Leader, video of FCPS press conference with Supt Stu Silberman:

Custodian slain; Two men had a recent conflict

José Daniel Donato left his home in Nicholasville about 6 a.m. Tuesday to go to Leestown Middle School in Lexington, where he worked as a custodian. His wife, Carrie Donato, said that the trouble he might have had with a guy at work wasn't something he discussed with her.

Two hours later, Donato, 38, was dead in the school. And Lexington police launched a search for fellow custodian Brian Allen McGuire, 27, who was probably driving a beige 2006 Suzuki Grand Vitara, Kentucky license plate 769-FVB.

McGuire, who faces a murder charge, is considered armed and dangerous. Lexington police have entered his name and the description of his car into a national law enforcement database.

Only a day earlier, on Monday afternoon, McGuire had reported to Fayette County schools' central office that Donato had displayed a knife to him last Friday and asked him if he was afraid, according to school officials.

School superintendent Stu Silberman said that McGuire, who had worked at the school for three years, told a human resources representative that he did not feel threatened by Donato...