Alberta woman's murder by husband prompts recommendations to AHS: fatality inquiry

CTV News

27-05-2025

An Alberta Health Services sign is pictured outside the Rockyview General Hospital in Calgary, Thursday, March 20, 2025. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh)
A dozen recommendations have been made to Alberta Health Services (AHS) after a man killed his wife less than two weeks after he was discharged from a mental health facility where he was being treated for homicidal thoughts.
Jesslyn Fenton was killed in November 2018 by her husband Brett Fenton at their home in Galahad, Alta.
According to an inquiry report into her death, Brett had a considerable history of mental illness – including thoughts of suicide and killing his wife and child – and had recently spent 12 days in an AHS mental health facility.
He continued to struggle with thoughts of suicide and anger after his release and made a plan to kill his wife, child and wife's sister before trying to provoke the police into shooting him. The night of his plan, he stabbed Jesslyn while she was sleeping and then eventually strangled her.
Afterward, he surrendered to police and later pleaded guilty to her murder. An inquiry into Jesslyn's death was called to consider how to prevent similar deaths.
According to the report, the events leading up to her killing are as follows:
Brett texted a crisis line on Oct. 10 and said he was considering suicide and might kill his wife and child beforehand.
Police responded the same day and took Brett to the Centennial Centre for Mental Health and Brain Injury in Ponoka.
Brett was treated by multiple psychiatrists over his stay, due to the lack of a full-time psychologist.
He was discharged from the centre on Oct. 22 and went home without having connected with an outside therapist to take over his care.
On Nov. 2, he stabbed and strangled Jesslyn and turned himself in to police.
According to the report sent to the justice minister, Brett had a long history of psychological and mental health issues and had seen multiple psychologists, doctors and social workers regarding anger issues, a diaper fetish and suicidal thoughts.
It found not all Brett's records, including records of him mentioning multiple times that he might harm his wife or child, were available or sought out by staff during his stay at the Centennial Centre.
'The psychiatrist leading the treatment team understood that Brett's thoughts of hurting his family were a one-off, and a dream only,' the inquiry reads. 'Where part of the justification to detain Brett was to protect others in response to homicidal thoughts, surely it is important to learn of how often and in what circumstances those thoughts arose.'
Brett's diaper fetish, according to evidence gathered during the inquiry, was deep-seated and was a big contributor to his stress, trouble at home and thoughts of suicide. However, a doctor at Centennial treated the diaper wearing as a habit, encouraging him to break it.
The inquiry found Brett's psychological report from Centennial, which could have highlighted a discrepancy between the treatment and the significance of the fetish and thus the increased risk upon release, was not not completed until the day Brett killed Jesslyn.
'Had the psychologist's report been available to the psychiatrist making treatment and discharge decisions it would be clear that diaper use had been and would likely continue to be a stressor in his relationship with Jesslyn,' the inquiry read.
After his release, Brett was also unable to book a follow up mental health appointment until Nov. 5, despite discharge and change of care being a 'risky time.'
'Brett should not, under the current criteria, have been free to choose to stay in the Centennial Centre or leave before he had started with the new and ongoing therapist. This would put Jesslyn and the baby as well as Brett at risk,' the inquiry reads.
The 12 recommendations made to AHS include:
that AHS intake forms including questions to identify previous therapists and ask for consent to have them provide information to the Centennial Centre;
If the centre is aware the patient has expressed thoughts of hurting or killing others, there should be a policy to follow up with prior identified therapists to ask if they have expressed those thoughts before;
If part of a patient's admission is due to homicidal thoughts, a written report from a qualified psychologist should be given to the centre's treatment team and reviewed by the responsible psychiatrist before the patient is discharged;
Recruit full time psychiatrists to work at the centre;
If a patient being discharged represents a risk of murder-suicide, it should be required that the patient begin treatment with an outside therapist before being discharged from hospital.
In addition to the 12 recommendations made to AHS, two were made to RCMP:
that the RCMP's violence in relationships course be mandatory for new recruits and a refresher offered to all officers periodically during professional development; and
police should be made aware that they are able to apply for an emergency protection order without a victim's consent.
The full report can be found here.
It has been sent to Recovery Alberta, the new health agency taking over mental health and addiction services from AHS.