Murder victim just starting life

Was proud to be earning money ‘the right way’

WARREN -- Two weeks before he died, Clayton Bender turned to social media to post about his recent successes.

A new job, and then a second new job. He was proud to be working, to be earning money "the right way," and he was on the "path to success."

But, "He was taken at such a young age and was never able to accomplish his goals," said Brittany Holland, the 23-year-old's sister-in-law.

Clayton Lee "ManMan" Bender was killed when a man fired a half dozen shots into a black Cadillac in the parking lot of Madden's Bar and Grill in Niles, fatally wounding him as he sat in the back seat.

Robin Luke Caviness, 38, is scheduled to appear today in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court, where he is facing two counts of murder, three counts of felonious assault and a count of illegal possession of a firearm in a liquor-permit premises. He is being held in the Trumbull County Jail on a $2 million bond.

Clayton Bender's uncle, Roma Bender, and his aunt, Amy Gilbert-Bender, raised Clayton for a portion of his life.

Roma Bender said his nephew was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Police have not said what the motive for the shooting was or what a fight in the minutes before the shooting was about. Clayton Bender was there with two other people. Caviness was there with three others.

Gilbert-Bender said she heard from others that racial slurs were thrown around in the minutes before the shooting.

"He wanted respect, to be treated with respect. He wanted to work a job, to earn his own money. He wanted to be on his own, to be independent. He wanted to make us proud," Roma Bender said.

"He didn't want to depend on anyone. He wrote about changing, but he had no opportunity to carry it out. But what he was doing, he was doing it right, he was on the right track," Gilbert-Bender said.

Clayton Bender was released from state custody May 14. He was given a two-year sentence in 2016 on a charge of aggravated burglary in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court.

When he was younger, Clayton got caught up with a bad crowd, his uncle said.

But he made the most of his time behind bars, Gilbert-Bender said. "It's not right, he was just trying to do right."

He finished school and left there with several certifications, she said.

"He was very positive. He wanted to change his life. He wasn't there for trouble that night, he was there to have a good time with friends," Holland said.

"ManMan" will be laid to rest in Champion Township Cemetery. Family and friends may call 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. today at the Bernard P. Borowski Memorial Home in Newton Falls, where services will begin at 11:30 a.m.