Inquiry announced into Lionel Desmond tragedy: ‘This is just the beginning’
HALIFAX — The Nova Scotia government says it will call an inquiry into the deaths of a former soldier and his family, nearly 12 months after the horrific bloodshed stunned a rural community and sent shock waves across the country.
Dr. Matthew Bowes, the province’s chief medical examiner, recommended the fatality inquiry on Thursday, calling the deaths in Upper Big Tracadie, N.S., an “unimaginable tragedy.”
On Jan. 3, 2017, retired corporal Lionel Desmond shot his wife Shanna, 31, their 10-year-daughter Aaliyah and his 52-year-old mother Brenda, before turning the gun on himself. Desmond had been diagnosed with PTSD and post-concussion disorder after completing two difficult tours in Afghanistan in 2007.
In a letter to Justice Minister Mark Furey, Bowes said the inquiry is necessary to “compel evidence and make recommendations for change.”