PORT HAWKESBURY, N.S. – A fatality inquiry in Nova Scotia learned more Friday about Lionel Desmond‘s severe mental decline after he served as an infantryman in the Afghanistan war.
The provincial inquiry, which resumed this week after an 11-month hiatus, is investigating why the mentally ill former corporal killed his mother, wife and daughter before fatally shooting himself in 2017.
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The inquiry heard for the first time from his wife’s immediate family, including Shanna Desmond’s parents and her younger brother.
The woman’s mother, Thelma Borden, submitted an affidavit to today’s hearing, saying Lionel Desmond often had visions of dead bodies and nightmares so intense that he once tried to choke his wife as she slept.
Shanna Desmond’s father, Ricky Borden, also submitted an affidavit, saying the former soldier had frequent outbursts and had not responded well to psychiatric treatment he received in 2016.
Today’s hearing concluded with testimony from Shanna Desmond’s younger brother, Sheldon Borden, who told the inquiry that the couple often argued, and he said he felt guilty for not having the tools or the resources to help his brother-in-law.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 19, 2021.