Kauai man gets
life sentence in
killing of
girlfriend’s father

No minimum term is set
for 22-year-old
Matthew Blankswade

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By Anthony Sommer
tsommer@starbulletin.com

LIHUE >> Matthew Blankswade, 22, who confessed to shooting his girlfriend's father in the face with a shotgun, was sentenced yesterday to life in prison with the possibility of parole.

Part of his plea agreement with county prosecutors was that no minimum sentence would be set, leaving his parole date up to the Hawaii Paroling Authority. Prosecutors also agreed to drop the prosecution of Blankswade's brother as an accessory.

Blankswade pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the June 26, 2000, killing of Jeffrey Brisebois, 48, as Brisebois slept in his home in a remote area of Wainiha on Kauai's north shore.

Blankswade told police the murder was planned and witnessed by his girlfriend, Jeffrey Brisebois' daughter Amber, then 18. Amber Brisebois and a brother held title to the house their father was using, and she wanted her father to move out so she could invite friends to live with her, Blankswade told detectives. When the elder Brisebois refused, Amber Brisebois asked Blankswade to kill him, he said in his confession.

Although police said she repeatedly lied about her activities on the day of the murder, Amber Brisebois refused to make a statement implicating herself to Kauai police and never has been charged in the killing. Police said she is believed to be living on the mainland.