Chicken cooks on a large grill during the Northern Heat Rib and Beer Festival in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, on June 7, 2026. The Northern Heat Rib Series is Canada's largest Rib & Beer Festival, featuring some of the best rib teams in North America. (Photo by Creative Touch Imaging Ltd./NurPhoto via Getty Images)
A holiday weekend ended tragically after a Michigan man was arrested for fatally stabbing his sister’s boyfriend at a Labor Day BBQ. Cleo Lawson allegedly stabbed Kenneth Thomason Monday, September 7, following a dispute over how to cook chicken.
Cleo Lawson, 62, allegedly stabbed his sister’s boyfriend, 60-year-old Kenneth Thomas, after arguing about how to properly cook chicken, according to the Hazel Park Police Department. The stabbing occurred at Thomas’ home in Hazel Park, Michigan, where he lived with Lawson’s sister. The couple was hosting the Labor Day BBQ when the tragedy occurred at approximately 5:20 p.m. Chief William Hamel shared a press release on Facebook on Monday, September 14.
“On Monday September 7′, 2026, at 5:20PM, Hazel Park Police Officers were dispatched to a residence for a stabbing,” reads a press release. “On arrival, Officers located an adult male (62yrs old) who sustained life threatening injuries and died during the attempt to treat the injury.”
“The victim (Kenneth Thomas) and his live-in girlfriend were having a barbeque when the girlfriend’s brother (Cleo Lawson) arrived. Lawson and Thomas had a dispute over how the chicken was to be cooked that led to a confrontation. It’s alleged that Lawson stabbed Thomas where he subsequently died.”
The tragedy at the Labor Day BBQ left the community in shock as people reacted on Facebook. Several folks noted how sad it was that a dispute over something so minor led to a man losing his life.
Kristy Layne wrote, “Over chicken
Linda Wehmueller agreed. “over chicken? good grief.”
Lawson was arrested and charged with second-degree murder, per CBS News, and is currently residing in the Oakland County Jail. Lawson was arraigned on Thursday, Sept. 10, but he was denied bond. A probable cause conference is scheduled for Tuesday, September 22, according to PEOPLE.
