Ogdensburg man pleads guilty to murder of teen

CANTON, N.Y. (WWNY) – An Ogdensburg man with a lengthy criminal history has pleaded guilty to murdering a teenager on a city street last year.

The St. Lawrence County Prosecutor's Office said Kenneth Durham, 44, pleaded guilty Thursday to second-degree murder.

On August 10, 2023, Durham allegedly used a knife to stab Bryson Jenks, 19, of Ogdensburg, in the chest during an argument in the 400 block of Paterson Street.

Jenks died shortly afterwards.

Durham fled the scene, allegedly cutting off a GPS tracking device he was required to wear while on parole. He was caught about two hours later.

He was initially charged with second-degree murder and third-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

“While nothing will ever restore the integrity of Mr. Jenk's family after his tragic and unnecessary death, I hope that today's plea and the defendant's eventual conviction will provide some form of closure and peace to the family. Given the history and conduct of the defendant here, the St. Lawrence County Prosecutor's Office will advocate and expect that the defendant never again leaves a correctional facility where he represents a extreme danger to all members of our community. The fact that the defendant agreed to plead guilty to the most serious charge he faced is a testament to the strength of our case due to the exceptional work of the Ogdensburg City Police Department, Sheriff's Office of St. Lawrence County, New York State Police, the North Country Crime Analysis Center, New York State Parole Officers and the District Attorney's Office,” the prosecutor said Gary Pasqua.

Durham faces 17 years to life in prison when he is sentenced Aug. 15.

At the time of his arrest, police also charged Durham in connection with several domestic disputes. The charges included second-degree unlawful imprisonment, criminal obstruction of breathing, two counts of second-degree harassment, second-degree aggravated harassment and fourth-degree criminal mischief.

According to court documents, on August 3, 2023, Durham allegedly punched a woman in the stomach and kicked her, forcing her to seek treatment at the hospital. He is also accused of threatening to slit her throat.

Court documents allege that on July 31, Durham grabbed the same woman by the throat, pushed her against a railing and squeezed her to the point she couldn't breathe.

According to the state's sex offender registry, Durham is a Level 3 sex offender. The state considers Level 3 offenders to be a threat to public safety and at high risk of repeating similar sex crimes.

Durham was convicted in 2002 of raping a 16-year-old girl and sentenced to a year in prison.

According to the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision website, Durham was sentenced in 2007 to one to three years in prison at the Mt. McGregor Correctional Center for a sex offender offense.

In 2010, a St. Lawrence County grand jury indicted Durham in connection with the April 6 molestation of an infant in the town of Morristown. He was charged with assault, reckless assault of a child, reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child.

The indictment accused him of injuring the baby's brain by shaking or throwing it.

He later pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree assault. Durham was sentenced in 2011 to 15 years in prison at the Washington Correctional Center.

He was granted parole in February 2023.

Copyright 2024 WWNY. All rights reserved.