A jury on Thursday found a Bangor man guilty of murdering his friend.
Gary Brinson, 71, was found guilty of murder in the death of Lee Ruona. A jury returned the guilty verdict after about 40 minutes of deliberations in Penobscot County Superior Court.
Brinson killed Ruona, 64, on Dec. 4, 2024, at Brinson’s apartment on Union Street.
The jury heard two days of witness testimony before deciding the verdict.
“The jury did its job very efficiently,” Maine Assistant Attorney General Leanne Robbin said. “In our view the evidence was overwhelming that Gary Brinson had beat Lee Ruona to death in [Brinson’s] apartment.”
Brinson’s attorney, Kaylee Folster, declined to comment after the verdict.
Brinson and Ruona lived in the same apartment building and were drinking buddies, Brinson had told police. The night of the killing they had split a gallon and a half of bourbon and several cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon.
Multiple interviews with Bangor police in the aftermath of Ruona’s death were played in court Wednesday. In the recordings, Brinson maintains that he does not know what happened to Ruona, that he woke up and found his friend dead.
Ruona had tried to steal from Brinson that day and Brinson had slapped the man, but Brinson said he doesn’t remember doing anything else.
Brinson had admitted to the killing and made multiple statements that showed how little he thought of Ruona, Robbin said.
“We are grateful that the jury was able to see our perspective on the evidence,” Robbin said.
Brinson is held in the Penobscot County Jail and is scheduled for sentencing on April 14.