HAY RIVER - A tragic death and a subsequent charge of manslaughter has shocked and saddened Hay River.

Brent Nixon: resident of Hay River died after what police describe as an altercation outside the Royal Canadian Legion in the early morning hours of Aug. 14. RCMP will not say where the altercation began, however. - photo courtesy of Facebook

Brent Darrell Nixon, 50, died in the early morning hours of Aug. 14 following what police are calling an altercation outside the Royal Canadian Legion.

On Aug. 17, Hay River resident Mark Glen Larsen, 28, was charged with manslaughter.

"I'm sure many, many people throughout the community knew them both and just feel horrible about the whole thing," said Mayor Kelly Schofield, adding he was a friend of both.

The mayor said he was absolutely shocked by Nixon's death.

"My heart sank," he said. "It took me aback big-time.'

Schofield worries the incident might contribute to building a reputation for Hay River as a violent community, especially when added to the murder of an RCMP officer in 2007.

"We were just starting to get back on our feet from one tragedy and here's another one right in our face again," he said. "It's hard to deal with. It's hitting everybody pretty hard, I'm sure."

One of the Hay River residents shocked by the events of Aug. 14 is Randy Randle.

"Brent was a friend of mine," said Randle, who knew Nixon for about a decade. "I'm sorry to see him go."

Randle described Nixon as not a fighter and a mellow, soft-spoken guy.

"Basically, a kind of hippie, in a way," he said. "He never struck me as the type to ever be starting a fight anywhere."

As for whether Nixon knew Larsen, Randle noted there is quite an age difference between the two.

"I've never seen them together," he said.

Randle said he has seen Larsen around town and he also appeared to be a mellow guy and a family man.

"That part of it is pretty shocking, too," he said.

Other residents have been expressing their feelings in a number of ways, including on the social media website Facebook.

On the day after Nixon's death, one woman wrote on his homepage that Sunday was looking like it would be a nice day.

"The town needs it right now," the woman wrote. "Sunshine to make things seem normal again. Yesterday was a 'walking around in a shock fog' day."

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