Jury weighing fate of suspect in fatal Sebastopol stabbing

Jurors continued deliberating Friday over whether the fatal stabbing of a Sebastopol man last year was an act of murder or self-defense.

Cory Alan Vaughn, 19, was stabbed to death during a fight with Anthony Ibach of Sebastopol in the parking lot of the Gravenstein Grill near downtown just before noon April 21, 2018. Ibach, then 18, dealt a fatal swipe with a knife then fled the scene in his car and was arrested hours later in San Rafael.

Vaughn died at the scene, a parking lot in downtown Sebastopol on a day when the city was bustling after the annual Apple Blossom Parade.

Sonoma County Deputy District Attorney Chris Brown said investigators believe Ibach intended to instigate a fight with Vaughn when he drove to the parking lot near an apartment where Vaughn and others were partying. Uninvited, Ibach called and sent video messages to people inside the party, causing Vaughn and about four others to come outside, he said.

“Anthony did what he wanted to do, and he got what he wanted,” Brown said.

Ibach’s lawyer said that while he had wanted to settle a dispute with Vaughn - which grew out of arguments about a PlayStation game - Ibach had hoped for a fair fight but found himself outnumbered and surrounded.

“If you are outnumbered in a fight, you can fight for your life,” attorney Joe Bisbiglia said.

Ibach, in a beige suit and blue button-down shirt, teared up as he listened to closing arguments, which concluded Thursday. The six man, six woman jury were given the case Thursday afternoon and began deliberations.

During the nine-day trial, jurors were presented with opposing narratives about the fight. They heard testimony from a half-dozen witnesses plus others called to the stand, including investigators and two men asked by the defense to testify about past fights with Vaughn.

The fight was partially recorded on a Snapchat video, which was played for the jury at the start of trial.

Prosecutors described Ibach as set on confronting Vaughn. He drove to the apartment twice before returning a third time and informing people there that he was outside, according to prosecutors.

“The defendant wasn’t scared of Cory, he was the one who went after him,” Brown said.

Ibach’s lawyer told the jury Vaughn was “a dangerous and violent person” who responded to Ibach’s invitation for a two-on-two fight by showing up with at least three other men.

“He sees four people come out - mad, aggressive, fast,” said Bisbiglia, who added the friend with Ibach was a nursing student “who didn’t ?want to fight.”

Bisbiglia argued that when Ibach found himself outnumbered, the actions he took to defend himself were lawful self-defense. He asked jurors to acquit Ibach or consider a lesser crime than murder, such as voluntary manslaughter.

Judge Chris Honigsberg provided jurors with legal instructions for making their decision that included definitions of murder, voluntary manslaughter and lawful self-defense.

You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 707-521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jjpressdem.