A 50-year-old businessman who fatally stabbed a teenager tagging his garage door with spray paint was cleared of murder by a jury on Friday but found guilty of manslaughter.
The jury in the Auckland High Court took nearly 14 hours to reach its verdict which the judge said would divide people and called for restraint.
Bruce Emery, 50, fatally stabbed Pihema Cameron, 15, after he caught him spray-painting his house in Manurewa on January 26.
The court was told that Cameron and a 16-year-old relative had gone out to spray graffiti after drinking alcohol and smoking cannabis.
Police said that Emery took the law into his own hands and chased them with a knife before stabbing the boy. His defence lawyer said they sprayed paint on him and the teenager "stepped into" the knife as he tried to defend himself.
Emery was remanded until sentencing.