Witness: Tom Clayton a very loving father and husband
Thomas Clayton's admitted extramarital affairs didn't seem to mesh with his apparent love for his wife, according to ServPro owner Brian Lang.
Lang testified for the second day Friday in the trial of the Binghamton native and former Elmira Jackals hockey player, who is charged with first- and second-degree murder in connection with the bludgeoning death of his wife Kelley. She was killed late Sept. 28 or early Sept. 29, 2015 in their Town of Caton home.
Michael Beard, who worked for Clayton at two home remediation franchises, Paul Davis and ServPro, has already been tried and convicted for killing Kelley Clayton. Prosecutors are trying to prove Thomas Clayton hired Beard to carry out the crime.
Beard's sentencing, which had been set for Monday, has been rescheduled for 10 a.m. Feb. 27.
After Lang testified most of the day Thursday about his relationship with Clayton, who he described as a childhood friend and later business partner, he returned to the stand Friday while still under cross-examination by defense attorney Ray Schlather.
Lang said Clayton sometimes brought his children to ServPro, where he was production manager, and it appeared he was a loving and doting father.
Lang said it appeared Clayton had a similar relationship with his wife, and it was difficult to reconcile that with the knowledge that Clayton admitted to and even bragged about sleeping with other women.
"I observed someone who loved his wife," Lang testified. "It caused confusion but I observed what I observed. I never witnessed them fight or saw Tom get aggressive with Kelley. I described Kelley Clayton as a strong-willed woman, independent and tough, who didn't take BS from anybody."
On redirect, special prosecutor Weeden Wetmore referred back to GPS records that indicated Clayton took a ServPro vehicle to Ohio between Sept. 23 and 26, 2015.
Lang confirmed on the stand that Clayton didn't immediately return home from Ohio after his training concluded, but spent the night at a casino in Salamanca before returning home Sept. 26.
Lang also said he assumed Clayton left his white pickup truck at ServPro while he was in Ohio but he had no direct knowledge of where the truck was.
Lang also reiterated that he and Clayton were looking into buying a building in downtown Elmira for $999,999 to relocate ServPro, and that Lang was hesitant about the deal because it looked like it would take several months to secure financing.
Lang said was more receptive when Clayton told him he had the cash to buy the building outright without a bank loan, and they went as far as signing a purchase agreement before Kelley Clayton was killed and Tom said he could no longer front the money for the deal.
Clayton had affairs, business owner testifies
Lang finally concluded his testimony at 11:40 a.m. Friday. Wetmore then called Richard Phillips, who owns a roofing company in Horseheads.
Phillips said Clayton called him about a week before Kelley Clayton's death and asked if he had any openings for laborers. Clayton told him he had a former ServPro employee who was looking for work. He didn't mention the worker by name but Phillips testified he later learned it was Michael Beard.
Phillips said he told Clayton he was always on the lookout for help and to have the former worker come into his office to fill out an application. Nobody ever showed up, he said.
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