Lionel Desmond fatality inquiry in Nova Scotia slated to resume after 11-month hiatus

A provincial inquiry investigating why a former Canadian soldier killed his family and himself is set to resume today in Nova Scotia.

On Jan. 3, 2017, Lionel Desmond used a semi-automatic rifle to kill his 52-year-old mother Brenda, his 31-year-old wife Shanna and their 10-year-old daughter Aaliyah in the family’s home in Big Tracadie, N.S.

The fatality inquiry has heard that the former Canadian soldier was suffering from severe post-traumatic stress disorder and a possible traumatic brain injury when he was released from the military in 2015.

The inquiry has also heard that Desmond received no therapeutic treatment in the four months before the fatal shootings.

The inquiry began hearings in early 2020, but it was suspended in March, soon after the COVID-19 pandemic was declared.

Desmond’s sister Cassandra and other members of the Desmond family are expected to give evidence this week at the hearings in Port Hawkesbury, N.S.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 16, 2021.

2:06
Family says race and racism yet to be addressed in Lionel Desmond Inquiry