U.S. man arrested trying to illegally enter Canada by kayak: police
LaSalle Police Service said an officer encountered the man shortly before 1 a.m. while conducting commercial property checks near the Detroit River.
'While checking the rear of a business, (the officer) saw a man at the water's edge of the Detroit River with two backpacks and a kayak,' a police statement said.
'The officer investigated and discovered the man was attempting to illegally enter Canada.'
Police said the 51-year-old man was detained and turned over to the RCMP for further investigation.
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Global News has asked the RCMP for more information about the case.
The man was already within Canada's boundary when he was detained. The Detroit River serves as a marine border between Ontario and Michigan.
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LaSalle lies just south of Windsor and is part of the city's greater metropolitan area.
The Ambassador Bridge, which is nine km away from where the man was arrested, serves as an economic and tourist connector between Windsor and Detroit.
A new connector, the Georgie Howe International Bridge, opened last year just south of the Ambassador Bridge.
'This is an outstanding example demonstrating that proactive police work can yield unintended positive outcomes,' LaSalle Police Chief Michael Pearce said in a statement.
'While conducting a simple property check, I'm confident our officer did not expect to find someone trying to illegally enter Canada.'
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- Global News
‘Not what you think they are': Inside a teen facility facing years of red flags, mistreatment claims
Nestled deep in the Ontario countryside, on the outskirts of a small, rural town, sits a facility that few outsiders know exists, marked only by a small, metal letterbox and an unassuming wire gate. Blink and you'll miss it. Beyond the modest entrance, little else belies its true purpose — a weathered ranch house and a few scattered outbuildings, hemmed in on every side by towering pines and white birch trees. This woodsy setting is billed as a sanctuary for troubled teens, where wellness and structure are intended to replace chaos and turmoil. Because this is Venture Academy, where families from across Canada send their children, desperate for help in the face of addiction, mental health crises, or behaviours that have spiralled out of control. But for those left there, this is also where, some say, they suffered psychological and emotional harm under the guise of therapeutic rehabilitation. 'You're unable to solve a problem. You're trying to do that so desperately for someone you love so much,' Winnipeg mother Connie Lester tells Global News. Lester's daughter, Cally, died of a drug overdose in 2020, seven years after her parents pulled her out of Venture. Lester doesn't blame Venture for Cally's death, but says attending the Barrie campus seems to have exacerbated her daughter's problems. 'And then there's this group that says, yeah, I can do that…. Well, these people are not what you think they are.' Government documents reveal officials have had concerns about the company for years. Venture Academy's monitoring and licensing inspections from the past five years, conducted by Ontario's Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services (MCCSS) and obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, revealed the Ministry found 147 breaches of the Child, Youth and Family Services Act in 2024 and 2025 – including children not being informed of their rights, communication being monitored and a repeated lack of documentation. In addition, there have been at least four allegations of sexual assault connected to Venture since 2010. Advertisement While teen anxiety and depression are on the rise in Canada, wait times for publicly-funded treatments are also soaring. Half of Canadians wait up to a month for ongoing counselling services, and in some jurisdictions, children and youth wait longer than adults, according to Canadian Institute for Health Information data. In March, a report from Ontario's auditor general found those with the most severe needs waited, on average, 105 days in 2023-2024 for live-in treatment — up from 94 days the year before. This leads desperate families to turn to private, or for-profit, treatment centres to help their struggling child, while the public system cannot. View image in full screen Connie Lester holds a portrait of her late daughter, Cally, who died of an accidental overdose in 2020. Cally attended Venture in 2013 seeking treatment for her drug use. The Lesters say the experience left her worse off. Krista Hessey / Global News Launched as one such option in 2001 by B.C. resident Gordon Hay, Venture Academy vows to address everything from drug and alcohol use, mental health issues to smartphone addiction. The first month can cost families more than $15,000, and it's about $10,000 for every month after that. Venture occupies a somewhat unique position as one of Canada's only for-profit treatment centres that solely targets youth struggling with a range of behavioural problems. Other facilities operate mostly in the non-profit sector or cater to more specialized niches, such as only treating mental health or addiction issues. Little is known about the scale of the for-profit, or private, industry. In contrast, Lise Milne, social work professor at the University of Regina and the research chair for the Child Trauma Research Centre, says that there's more oversight for non-profit companies, due to provincial legislation, policies and standards for transparency. But a Global News investigation spanning six months laid bare one program that seemingly struggled to manage the complex needs of children in their care, instances of sexual abuse, staff who say they weren't adequately trained, and allegations of a residential program run with little oversight. The investigation analyzed hundreds of pages of documents and spoke to 67 attendees, parents, staff and host parents across each of Venture Academy's three locations. 'There was nothing therapeutic about the program.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "There was nothing therapeutic about the program." 'There was nothing therapeutic about the program… holistic, therapeutic, positive, supportive — any of those synonyms should never have been used by that facility,' says one former Ontario staff member who asked not to be named due to fear of repercussions from Venture. Company officials did not respond to specific questions from Global News, citing 'reasons of confidentiality and privacy.' They did, however, provide a statement that described itself as a 'lifeline for youth and families in crisis.' 'With a strong parental and family component, Venture Academy has supported nearly 2,000 youth and families from across Canada since inception,' the statement said. Two former students told Global they wouldn't be where they are today if it weren't for the program, but neither agreed to go on the record. Those youth would not go on the record because they did not want to impede future job prospects by being associated with Venture. But dozens of others described to Global News an isolating and punitive experience where they were held against their will, despite informed consent for treatment being a requirement under Canadian law — including for youth. 'The only places where we force you to stay have typically judicial processes that go along with that forced deprivation of your liberty,' says Mary Birdsell, executive director at Toronto's Justice for Children and Youth. 'And from what I understand here, this is very extreme deprivation of your liberty.' View image in full screen Documents show years of red flags Interspersed with stock images of smiling young people and equally elated-looking adults, Venture Academy's website heralds itself as 'Canada's leading program for struggling teens.' Page after page is replete with the language of modern therapy — promises of a 'holistic approach' to treatment and a 'Milieu environment,' a method utilizing safe, structured group settings to help people learn healthier ways of thinking and behaving. Advertisement A stay at Venture begins with a 30-day assessment, billed as a 'crisis stabilization' period. Youth can only communicate with their parents through letters during this time and undergo 'psycho educational' testing, which is outsourced to a local psychology clinic. Based on those results, Venture says it develops schooling and treatment plans for the child and also recommends a length of stay between three and twelve months, during which time they are billeted to local host parents. Some teens, however, say they stay a lot longer. Days on the Venture campus are typically seven hours long, according to a sample Ontario campus schedule seen by Global News, and are predominantly spent doing 'academics & therapy.' At 4 p.m., they're picked up by host parents, whom the company employs as independent contractors. Monthly payments for host parents, according to a Venture job listing from late May, start at $2,100, and the only qualifications necessary appear to be a valid driver's licence, Level 1 first aid, and a criminal record check with a vulnerable sector search. Since launching in Kelowna, B.C., Venture opened two further locations near Red Deer, Alta., and in Southern Ontario. Its Kelowna location shuttered in 2021. Venture would not say why that location closed. The website dedicates several pages to the pitfalls of boot camp-style programs — the kind that have come under scrutiny in recent years in both the U.S. and Canada, such as Robert Land Academy, a private military-style boarding school in Ontario that closed in June eight months after media reporting on abuse allegations. But some former staff and youth described Venture as exactly that: a boot camp. Many hallmarks of those institutions, such as collective punishment, strict rules and control, lack of access to the outside world, gruelling CrossFit sessions and restricted communication with families, were allegedly part of Venture's program, while promising a 'safe and supportive' therapy-based model. '[We were told to treat youth] like they don't exist, they are not human, that they have no rights,' one former staff member says. But allegations of mistreatment go further than a boot camp masquerading under the guise of a therapeutic treatment facility. View image in full screen An illustration of Venture's Ontario campus located near Barrie, Ontario. Amanda Griffin / Global News Venture's Ontario campus, which appears to be the company's largest, has come under repeated scrutiny. In 2020, regional children's aid agency Simcoe Muskoka Family Connexions (SMFC) investigated Venture, for reasons the agency would not disclose, alleging it was 'causing risk of emotional harm to [youth].' Of the 13 youth interviewed in the investigation, five were verified by SMFC to be at risk of emotional harm. As a result, the agency issued 26 recommendations to Venture, which included making sure the company obtains youth's informed consent, enhancing its program to allow social interaction and community engagement and providing adequate training to its host parents. An SMFC spokesperson would not answer specific questions due to privacy concerns, but acknowledged 'any verification of risk of emotional harm is concerning.' 'I started to realize, 'I can't talk to people anymore. I can't express my emotions. I don't really feel anything.'' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I started to realize, 'I can't talk to people anymore. I can't express my emotions. I don't really feel anything.'" Months later, the campus was referred to the MCCSS Investigations and Enforcement Unit, which identifies high-risk residential sites, due to a 'high amount of non-compliances' and concerns over its licensing, according to Ministry documents. Issues were raised in various areas, including cameras in homes, the removal of children's shoes, host parents yelling at children, and youth being prevented from sharing personal information with one another. 'These practices may be viewed as unreasonable and contrary to the child's rights,' the report said. The company spent 15 months under provincial review. MCCSS would not answer any questions about this review or its outcome. In January this year, SMFC again visited the Ontario campus after receiving a 'referral for concerns.' The overarching themes, according to email correspondence obtained by Global News, included basic rights, children's identities being respected, licensing and an 'overly restrictive program.' Chris Clarke, spokesman for Michael Parsa, Minister of Children, Community and Social Services, declined to answer specific questions about the MCCSS reports but provided a statement about the government's improvements to the child welfare system. Advertisement Global News spoke to 16 youth who attended Venture's Ontario campus, the location of which Global is not identifying because it houses minors. Thirteen of them said that rules were so stringent that their access to the bathroom was restricted, and some urinated themselves as a result. A girl spoke of soaking her pants with blood because she was menstruating and wasn't allowed to visit the washroom. In its 2020 investigation, the SMFC found that the entire class could lose their lunch or free time for the same length of time a youth used the washroom, outside of prescribed times. Only three say they received one-on-one weekly therapy that they were promised. Fifteen say their mental health worsened after leaving the program. View image in full screen Grace McDonald, 22, attended Venture Academy's Ontario campus for nine months starting in 2019. Courtesy Grace McDonald 'I've had some long-lasting negative effects from the program, and I think the reason I didn't realize that at first is because I did come out like a complete 180 of the person I was,' says Grace McDonald, who attended the campus in 2019 while suffering from depression. 'My first reaction [was] my parents' first reaction as well. 'Oh my God, the program helped so much. That's great.' And then I started to realize, 'I can't talk to people anymore. I can't express my emotions. I don't really feel anything.'' Five former staff members say management stifled dissent and were told that if teens brought forward complaints, they were not to be believed. The promised individualized care by a team of professionals, including psychologists, clinical therapists, youth workers and teachers, was scarcely offered according to some attendees. Instead, they say, therapy was a place for their vulnerabilities to be weaponized — with therapy notes shared amongst staff. Several parents told Global News they believe Venture misled them about the program's therapy-based offering. Heather Burchill-McDonald, Grace's mother, acknowledges that attending Venture may have saved her daughter's life, and Grace 'learned things' there. But 'a lot of damage [was] done' at the same time. 'I didn't call Venture and say my kid is misbehaving and I need help — I called and said my daughter is ill and she needs inpatient treatment,' she says. 'And they would have led me to believe that's what happened there.' View image in full screen Informed consent a 'human rights issue' Venture's welcome package document outlines strict rules — contact with families restricted to letters and pre-scheduled phone calls, uniforms, chaperoned outings — are laid out between inspirational buzzwords — live, inspire, create! — and a Walt Disney quote about the virtues of 'moving forward.' The document stipulates that youth have the right to 'give informed consent for service,' an obligation of treatment for a Canadian of any age with capacity. However, the Venture agreement forms reviewed by Global News were only signed by guardians, which include authorizations for program aspects such as assessment, medical examinations, and searches. That's also despite the fact that when a child turns 16, they can legally withdraw from parental control in many provinces, including Ontario, Alberta, and B.C. In a 2024 report, MCCSS labelled Venture's 2022 welcome package 'severely deficient' and not compliant with the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, because it 'fails to outline a child's rights.' That report stated that Venture pledged to add 'revised rights and responsibilities' to the welcome package, and it would be 'reviewed at all new admissions.' But in 2025, inspectors noted that 'there was no evidence that the licensee considered any information or supports to help the youth exercise their rights.' Advertisement That's where experts say Venture may be breaching the law. 'It's not simply a matter of, 'You have a legal right to be informed of treatment that you are receiving.' It's also a human rights issue,' says Mary Birdsell. 'You have to be informed of what the treatment is, what it's meant to do… how long they might be there.' View image in full screen Isabelle Lebrun, 22, looks through documents from her time at Venture Academy. She spent 545 days at Venture's Ontario location and says she left traumatized. Jeffrey Stephen / Global News Isabelle Lebrun, who spent 18 months at Venture Academy, says she tried to refuse to consent to treatment and did not sign her release of information form for about a year, but regardless, remained enrolled. These days, Lebrun speaks with a self-assured confidence of her time there, her face framed by glossy brown hair and acetate glasses. 'I had a lot of stuff happen to me when I was a kid, and nothing, nothing is worse than… the stuff that I went through at [Venture],' she says, describing the isolation and punishments. Letters home were often withheld, youth told Global News — they believe it was because they were critical of the program. Three staff confirmed Venture employees read teens' letters. They say phone calls were also monitored and restricted. Youth raised concerns about a lack of private communication to ministry officials in 2022, 2024 and 2025, documents confirm. '[…] Communication is treated as a privilege earned based on behaviour, rather than a right,' the 2024 report says, before stating that Venture had not adequately provided evidence of how they ensure letters are not examined. Burchill-McDonald says she was told not to believe any negative feedback from her daughter about the program, and that the teens were 'all manipulative' and it was a 'tactic that they all use' so they get sent home. Research has linked punishment-based programs for youth, such as boot camps, with lasting psychological harm, including long-term difficulties with trust, self-esteem, anger management and trauma symptoms that persist into adulthood. View image in full screen Landen Brennan, 18, who attended the Ontario campus in 2023, said after leaving Venture he didn't recognize himself anymore. Krista Hessey / Global News But although Venture rejects the term as a description of its offering, experts say the punitive environment and strict controls described by youth and staff are akin to those programs — which can often harm youth more than they help. 'Compliance-based programming, those sort of rewards [and] punishment-based programmings simply don't work,' says Lise Milne. 'They actually are counterintuitive. They are counterproductive for youth who often emerge with more concerning behaviours.' Landen Brennan, who attended Venture Ontario in 2023 when he was 16, says he began self-harming while he was in the program. Now 18, Brennan is soft-spoken and speaks through a curtain of magenta hair. Openly gay, he says his host father 'screamed at me that I should act more like a man.' He spoke of 'heavy religious undertones' and a 'don't say gay environment' on campus that left him feeling unsure of his identity. Venture Academy marketing material from an unknown date, found online, promotes itself as a Christian institution. However, he says the therapy he received was 'the best part, if the only good part, of Venture,' and that he received 45-minute sessions most weeks. But his mother, Stephanie McGillvray-Brennan, says his depression worsened after he left the program. 'As soon as he got out of Venture, he was so unsure of himself, he would question everything, and he would say daily, 'Mom, am I a bad person?'' Advertisement View image in full screen 'My son was the one who suffered' Housing youth with local families is a key but controversial part of the Venture experience. Teens say they were often forced to spend most of their time alone in their rooms, weren't fed sufficiently, were exposed to drugs and alcohol and lived in basements or makeshift rooms. One girl told Global News she slept in a common room with a curtain as a partition. Another girl said she was forced to sleep in only her underpants for 12 weeks — a punishment for running away. Venture's Ontario campus is licensed as a foster care agency — a category that, according to the allegations of staff and youth, could put it at odds with Ontario law. Foster agencies are not allowed to deprive children of basic needs, including food or the use of a toilet, unless it is necessary to prevent immediate harm. They also cannot withhold or threaten to withhold visits or communication from family members. Basements are not allowed to be used as bedrooms. 'I question oversight because it's hard for me to imagine how the types of… experiences that youth are sharing now have not been followed up on and that the organizations have been able to continue to operate […],' says Lise Milne. Several of these same concerns were raised in MCCSS reports. The 2022 report found that youth being confined to their rooms for hours at a time was common practice at three out of five homes investigated, and that children were 'only allowed out of their rooms when they get permission.' It also observed that 'all bedroom doors are equipped with alarms that sound when the door is opened.' It was a common concern, relayed by 10 youth to Global News. Some say that prevented them from using the bathroom at night. View image in full screen Venture Academy's Kelowna campus, pictured here in the top right, was based out of the historic Black Mountain Schoolhouse. Since the location was shut down, it has become a liquor store. Global News / Venture Academy Website Parker Pennington, 18, who attended Venture Academy's Kelowna campus in 2021 when he was 13, says he would have to defecate in his underwear and 'just take it to the garbage.' He recalls being treated like a 'caged animal' at his host parent's house, and says his experience was defined by violence and fights. After Parker returned home, he was unable to sleep alone, says his mother, Sarrah Pennington. Pennington tells Global News she feels ripped off 'financially, emotionally, psychologically.' 'I just feel completely taken advantage of, preyed upon, and my son was the one who suffered from this,' she adds. Host parents themselves say they weren't given sufficient training to deal with at-risk youth, other than receiving an information binder, a book by renowned physician and addictions specialist Gabor Mate and developmental psychologist Gordon Neufeld and an orientation. Global News spoke to 10 Venture host parents. Most requested anonymity because their contracts prohibit them from making any derogatory statements about their former employer, 'whether or not such… statements are true.' View image in full screen Venture's Ontario location is in a small town nearby Barrie, Ontario. Kurt Brownridge / Global news Two host parents spoke of being under pressure to take more children than they could responsibly house. One host parent mentioned that he had put a bed in his dining room. Advertisement Court records also reveal there is at least one allegation of sexual abuse of a minor committed by a host parent associated with the Ontario campus, which occurred in 2011, and three associated with the company's Kelowna campus since 2010. [A second story in this series will look at this in more detail.] In 2014, a host parent by the name of Victor Lucero was arrested in the high-profile bust of a massive drug importation network directed by Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel. Lucero, a real estate agent, helped to arrange a mortgage deal with the crime ring for a warehouse, he confirmed to Global News, but was not involved any further. 'I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong clients,' he says. In April 2016, Lucero pleaded guilty to possession of the proceeds of crime with a value over $5,000 and received a 19-month conditional sentence. Lucero would not tell Global News if children were in his home when he was arrested and declined to answer any further questions. Venture initially removed youth from Lucero's home, but reintroduced them after he was convicted, according to former staff and a teen who was in his home in late 2016. Correspondence shared with Global News shows that Ontario executive director Louise Beard and Teresa Hay, Venture's managing director, were made aware of the court case in 2016 after a staff member sent them a news article about his charges. Within a week of reporting the case to leadership, that same employee says she was fired. MCCSS and Venture declined to answer questions about Lucero. Venture also declined to answer questions about the staffer's termination. View image in full screen Company management's qualifications unclear Like host parents, those who run Venture do not seem to be specifically trained in youth mental health, either. Gordon and Teresa Hay started Venture Academy in 2001 after working as foster parents for high-needs youth in B.C. for two years. Gordon holds a bachelor's degree from Brandon University, Global confirmed. A 2014 bio from the Venture website states that he majored in psychology and physical education. His wife, Teresa, who had management experience in the fitness and service industries, ran Venture's Kelowna campus until it shut down in 2021. Ontario Executive Director Louise Beard's website biography, which was recently removed from the website, stated that she worked for the Department of National Defence (DND) and has 'extensive training and education in trauma and addictions.' DND confirmed Beard worked for them as an addiction counsellor periodically between 2002 and 2005. Beard, as well as the Hays, declined to answer questions from Global News. Staff, however, spoke strongly about Beard's management style. 'It was probably the most destructive, personally psychologically damaging place to work ever,' says one former employee, who quit. View image in full screen A former Venture staff member said youth in Ontario had to have their heads down when walking and couldn't make eye contact or speak freely to one another. 'If there was anything that looked like you were making a signal for help…you were reprimanded,' they said. James Morrison-Collalto / Global News 'I was gaslit and told that I have no idea what I'm talking about and that these kids are horrible human beings and they're just playing you,' says another former employee, who also left the company. There are contradicting reports on how many therapists the Ontario campus employed. Youth and staff say the only on-site therapist was a woman named Naomi Hoffenberg, who confirmed to Global News that she served as a part-time contractor, working primarily two days per week between 2014 and 2022. Hoffenberg added that other therapists also provided services — including Beard — and confirmed therapy conversations were summarized in 'sessional notes' that were accessible to staff but there she wasn't aware of any incidents related to the use of them. Advertisement Beard did not respond to questions about what qualifications she had to provide therapy. Joseph Mete, who says he worked at the Ontario campus between 2009 and 2018, says that he provided counselling for 'two or three hours a day' while completing a two-year course in social service work at Georgian College in Barrie, Ont. He says he was encouraged to 'diagnose the kids with something,' and pass feedback to parents that they should keep the child in the program, even if they didn't need it. Another staffer, in Alberta, told us they simply Googled worksheets for group therapy sessions. Mete eventually left the job because he didn't agree with the way the children were being treated. He believed many children 'worsened' while at Venture. View image in full screen
Global News
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- Global News
Ontario police force may be 1st in Canada to use drones for some 911 calls
A police force in one of Canada's most populated regions may soon be deploying drones as first responders for certain 911 calls. Peel Regional Police Deputy Chief Anthony Odoardi told Global News in a statement Wednesday the initiative would make them 'one of, if not the first police service in Canada' to use drone technology in that capacity. 'The initiative aims to reduce response times and provide officers with real-time information before they arrive,' Odoardi said. 'While specific call types are still being finalized, drones may be used for in-progress incidents such as break and enters, missing vulnerable persons, or auto thefts.' Odoardi added the force is currently in the 'planning and regulatory review phase' and will eventually begin with a limited pilot. He did not offer a timeline of its implementation, but said the pilot will assess operation value, cost and community impact. Story continues below advertisement 'Privacy protections, including a Privacy Impact Assessment and community consultations, will guide implementation,' he said. 2:20 Glimpse into VPD's drone program Over the last several years, police forces across Canada have been increasingly utilizing drones. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Several police forces, including in Halton Region and Peel, currently utilize drones for search and rescue cases, collision reconstruction, tactical operations and disaster response. In June, an Ontario Provincial Police drone was crucial in finding a three-year-old Quebec girl who was the subject of a frantic four-day search in both provinces. The girl, who was reported missing in Coteau-du-Lac, Que., was spotted four days later by the police drone sitting alone in a ditch along the side of a highway near St. Albert, roughly 100 km from where she was reported missing. Story continues below advertisement Even in Vancouver — where the Vancouver Police Department's (VPD) 20 drones flew 1,826 missions in 2024 — drones have been described as critical to daily policing. 'We answer 700 calls for service a day and these pilots are incredibly busy,' VPD Supt. Don Chapman told Global News in March. One of their drones was key in capturing murder suspect Brendan Colin McBride, accused of killing a man in downtown Vancouver in September 2024 and of slicing off another person's hand. McBride was found on Habitat Island by the police drone. 2:55 Suspect charged in Vancouver stranger attacks Every mission requires a pilot and a spotter, with video streamed back to an operational command centre, the VPD said. But only five per cent of the recordings are preserved, and VPD told Global News those must be connected to a crime. Story continues below advertisement Odoardi reiterated to Global News Peel police's drones won't be used outside of their intended purpose. 'All drone operations will be managed by trained officers through our Aerial Support Unit and Community Safety Operations Centre and will not be used for general surveillance or utilize facial recognition technology,' he said. 'We are committed to advancing technology in our service to better support our communities and equip officers with the tools needed to enhance emergency response efforts.' — with files from Catherine Urquhart
Global News
8 hours ago
- Global News
‘Delusional' man not liable for wife's death, B.C. court rules
The B.C. Supreme Court says a Chilliwack, B.C., man who stabbed his wife to death in 2024 was suffering from a 'delusional belief' when the violent killing occurred, finding him not criminally responsible for her murder. The court ruling posted online Wednesday says Joseph Berkiw, now 70, killed his wife, who can't be named under a publication ban, while believing he was 'saving her' from being tortured or raped by people who were targeting the couple. It says Berkiw worked as a machinist and had become 'preoccupied' with concerns about not getting paid from his job, and began acting in unusual and paranoid ways in the lead-up to the killing. 2:29 How do the courts define 'not criminally responsible'? The ruling says the couple lived with their adult son, who had called police over his father's 'bizarre behaviour' on Jan. 8 and Jan. 12, 2024, but officers determined he didn't meet the criteria to be apprehended 'under the Mental Health Act because nobody indicated he presented an immediate risk to himself or anyone else.' Story continues below advertisement The court ruling says Berkiw attacked his wife with a knife on Jan. 17, stabbing her before being taken to the ground by his son, and she called police in 'extreme distress,' telling the call-taker that her husband was mentally ill and 'trying to kill everybody.' Get weekly health news Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday. Sign up for weekly health newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The ruling says Berkiw broke free of his son's grasp and got another knife, slashing his wife's throat and cutting his son, who had tried to protect her, and the court found he was suffering from a mental disorder that included 'delusional beliefs' that rendered him 'incapable of knowing that his actions were morally wrong.'
