PORT HAWKESBURY: As retired Cpl. Lionel Desmond struggled to find the necessary help he desperately needed as his mental health deteriorated in late 2016, the Province of Nova Scotia didn’t offer any culturally-specific mental health programs.
GUYSBOROUGH: The lead investigator into the
deaths of Afghanistan war veteran and his family detailed the chain of events,
including the steps the former soldier took and the level of planning that led
to the triple murder-suicide, on Wednesday at...
GUYSBOROUGH: Just two hours before retired
Cpl. Lionel Desmond used a military-style carbine to kill his 52-year-old mother,
31-year-old wife, and 10-year-old daughter, before turning the gun on himself,
the Afghanistan war veteran looked coherent and focused when he purchased...
GUYSBOROUGH: The New Brunswick doctor who signed off on
retired Cpl. Lionel Desmond’s firearms licence review described the 33-year-old
veteran on the medical assessment as “non-suicidal and stable,” along with
having “no concerns for firearms usage with appropriate licence.”
PORT HAWKEBSURY: The Desmond Fatality Inquiry heard from its final witnesses last week, including a psychiatrist who claimed Ret. Cpl. Lionel Desmond had an inadequate discharge plan when he left Ste. Anne’s Hospital in August 2016.
PORT HAWKESBURY: Rather than immediately being connected by Veterans Affairs with a psychiatrist or psychotherapist in Nova Scotia after his release from Ste. Anne’s Hospital, retired Cpl. Lionel Desmond searched for help on his own.
PORT HAWKESBURY: The uncle of retired Cpl. Lionel Desmond says he wasn’t in distress and didn’t see any warning signs from his nephew when he spent the night at his house before carrying out the triple-murder suicide...
PORT HAWKESBURY: To allow Judge Warren Zimmer to continue his work, the conclusion of the Desmond Fatality Inquiry has been extended.
The Desmond Fatality Inquiry, which saw testimony from 69 witnesses over 53 days,...
PORT HAWKESBURY: Chantel Desmond went to go pick up her niece on Jan. 3, 2017 at her brother’s house in Upper Big Tracadie, but rather than finding her ready to go to an after-school program, she discovered...
GUYSBOROUGH: The chief firearms officer who approved
Cpl. Lionel Desmond’s firearms possession and acquisition licence renewal
testified on February 20 she would have rejected the soldier’s application if
she had been more aware of his severe mental illness.