La Loche shooter 'wasn't bothered' by victim impact statements: psychologist
Psychiatrist says teen did not suffer from psychotic illness at time of offence
The teenager responsible for the La Loche shooting "wasn't bothered" when he heard the impact statements of traumatized shooting victims and heartbroken relatives of those who died, a Saskatchewan court heard on Tuesday.
In January 2016, the teenager stalked classroom to classroom in a school in the northern Saskatchewan community of La Loche, firing a shotgun. He shot and killed Adam Wood, 35, and teacher's assistant Marie Janvier, 21.
Earlier in the day, he had shot and killed teenage brothers Dayne and Drayden Fontaine at a home in the community.
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- 'I didn't plan to shoot them,' La Loche killer says of Fontaine brothers
The second week of the shooter's sentencing hearing is currently underway in Meadow Lake, Sask., to determine whether he should be sentenced as a youth or an adult.
'Callousness' in attitude toward school victims: psychologist
Mental health professionals who took the stand on Tuesday were questioned about the shooter's motivations, his mental health and his level of remorse.
Saskatoon Health Region clinical psychologist Katelyn Harker testified that the shooter was not particularly impacted by hearing the victims recount how they had been affected by the shootings.
Harker said he sometimes expressed remorse over the shootings but not always, and that there was a "callousness" in his attitude toward the victims at the school, but not the Fontaine brothers.
She also told the court that an "admiration" for the Columbine school shooters was common among many other shooters, and that the person behind for the La Loche killings is no different.
"I do believe that yes, that was an element of what was going on for the [shooter]," Harker said.
She added that staff at Kilburn Hall — a youth custody facility in Saskatoon — also reported the shooter would sometimes "laugh" about police shootings and once even mentioned something about joining ISIS.
According to a report, he told a case worker he got "an extreme scary rush after pulling the trigger."
Harker said the statements were evidence of the shooter having "empathy impairments."
She said the youth also once told her that shooting guns puts him in a good mood.
Harker was concerned he could misunderstand the seriousness of his offence because of the forgiveness and support he had received from his own relatives, and from the Fontaine family.
Psychiatrist 'puzzled' by shooter's actions
Crown witness and psychiatrist Dr. Declan Quinn also noted the youth's intense interest in previous school shootings during his testimony.
The night before the shooting, the teen looked up on his iPad "What does it feel like to kill someone."
The next day in school, he used his iPhone to search the names Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold — the two infamous shooters in the 1999 Columbine school shooting that left 15 dead (including the shooters) and injured 24.
These were details revealed in the first week of the court proceeding in Meadow Lake.
Quinn said this fascination could have been a contributing factor in the teen's deadly actions.
But in the end, the psychiatrist had no clear answer about why the shooter did what he did.
"I am as puzzled now as I was the first day I met him," he said.
Teen was not psychotic at time of offence: psychiatrist
Dr. Quinn said he saw the shooter on four different occasions in Kilburn Hall in an attempt "to try and describe any existing psychiatric order he might have."
I am as puzzled now as I was the first day I met him.- Dr. Declan Quinn
Following the visits, Quinn was able to conclude that the teen's cognitive skills were in normal range.
He added that there's no signs that the teen suffered from anxiety disorders, clinical depression, psychosis, hallucinations or schizophrenia, but he did likely suffer from ADHD.
While the shooter did not rank high on the doctor's rating scales, he did "self-identify" as depressed and anxious. However, Quinn said this self-reporting does not make his own clinical diagnosis invalid in any way.
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Shooter struggled at school, says defence
Defence lawyer Aaron Fox said the shooter had been having trouble with focusing at school and speaking in class since Grade 1. He questioned Harker about the youth's school life, and she responded that he said he sometimes felt like people were laughing at him.
"He didn't really consider a future, he didn't consider himself having a positive future," said Harker.
She agreed with Fox that there was a lack of accountability from the shooter's family and school officials about how poorly he was doing at school.
Hearing continues Wednesday
The teen, who was 17 at the time of the shootings — and can't be named due to provisions in the Youth Criminal Justice Act — pleaded guilty in October to two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder and seven counts of attempted murder.
The hearing continues on Wednesday. CBC Reporter Charles Hamilton will be reporting from court.