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Psychiatrist puzzled by La Loche shooter motives

Jun 13, 2017 | 3:28 PM

“I’m as puzzled today as the day I first met him.” 

These were some of the words spoken by a Declan Quinn, a court-ordered child psychiatrist who appeared via videoconference in a Meadow Lake courtroom this morning. Quinn was a Crown witness in a sentencing hearing for a young gunman who killed four and injured seven others in La Loche on January 22, 2016.

The now 19-year-old, who cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, was at the hearing to determine whether he will face sentencing as an adult. This is the second week of hearings, with the first taking place May 16-19.

The youth pleaded guilty in October 2016 to the second-degree murders of brother Dayne and Drayden Fontaine, and to the first-degree murders of teacher Adam Wood and teacher’s aide Marie Janvier.

Quinn’s line of response came from cross-examination from defence lawyer Aaron Fox. It was indicated that Quinn was not assigned to the case to determine the motive of the shooter. He said that his goal was twofold – to determine if the shooter had psychiatric disorders, and to see if he was fit to enter pleas. He met with the youth at Kilburn Hall Youth Centre in Saskatoon a total of four times – twice in December 2016 and twice in January 2017.

During questioning from Crown prosecutor Lloyd Stang, Quinn said he did not find evidence of psychiatric issues, but the youth himself had indicated that he was ‘quite unhappy, anxious and having low self-esteem.’

In the questioning, it had been brought up that the youth often didn’t complete assignments and often seemed unmotivated in school, and that this was a common thread throughout his schooling. He did show signs of conduct disorder, which align with antisocial behavior. Quinn also noted the shooter had a “terrible” attitude towards school.

Another Crown witness, Cpl. Jim Lemaigre, who is a Dene-speaking RCMP officer was also on the stand this morning. Lemaigre observed the seven-hour-long police interview the shooter did with another officer in October 2016. He also spoke to the shooter in his native language of Dene directly as part of the interview.

More to come.

 

Follow @ReporterKath on Twitter for live court updates. 

kathy.gallant@jpbg.ca