Boy, 17, charged in slaying of 14-year-old girl on downtown street By: Chris Kitching and Dean Pritchard Posted: 10:30 AM CST Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023 Last Modified: 5:14 PM CST Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023 Updates

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A 17-year-old male is accused of fatally stabbing a 14-year-old girl in downtown Winnipeg last week, renewing concerns about violent crime involving youth and social supports for vulnerable children.

The Winnipeg Police Service charged the 17-year-old with second-degree murder, after he was arrested near Provencher Boulevard and Des Meurons Street in St. Boniface on Monday.

The accused remained in police custody Tuesday afternoon when he made his first court appearance via video at the Manitoba Youth Centre.

The teen leaned forward in his chair and appeared to listen attentively as Crown attorney Jacqueline Briard and defence lawyer Brett Gladstone requested his case be adjourned to Wednesday, when the Crown will apply for an order banning him from having contact with a number of potential witnesses.

“Mr. Gladstone has indicated he would like an opportunity to speak to (the youth) about those names and have a conversation about that prior to the Crown application,” Briard told provincial court Judge Julie Frederickson.

A date for a contested bail hearing has yet to be set, Briard said.

‘Nothing could justify these actions’

Police said the girl was stabbed multiple times during an argument on Graham Avenue, just west of Fort Street, at about 1 p.m. Friday.

The attack happened in front of the Cargill Building and less than 200 metres from police headquarters.

She is Winnipeg’s youngest homicide victim of 2023.

A source told the Free Press the girl had been in custody on minor charges and was released on bail one day before she was killed.

Police said the victim was with the suspect and two girls, all of whom knew each other.

The group was in a nearby Tim Hortons shortly before the stabbing, said an employee, who added there appeared to be an argument before the boy and the girls left.

Police did not divulge the reason for the argument.

“Even if I could, nothing could justify these actions or justify the outcome,” said spokesman Const. Jason Michalyshen.

The suspect fled after the stabbing. He was arrested after leaving a residence, said Michalyshen.

Advocate may review case

Friday’s daylight slaying could prompt a review by Manitoba’s advocate for children and youth, Sherry Gott, who said the homicide speaks to a lack of services for young people.

“Any time a child dies, it’s tragic,” she told the Free Press Tuesday. “In this case, the manner in which (the girl) died, according to the reports from the news, it’s such a tragic way to die, a needless way. She was only 14 years old.”

Gott is alarmed by the frequency of violence involving youth victims and suspects.

“It needs to be addressed, the number of violent incidents,” she said.

“Violence among our youth has to stop.”–Premier Wab Kinew

The police investigation into Friday’s incident is not yet complete. The two girls who were present were being interviewed, said Michalyshen.

“We’re still gathering information and doing our best to ensure all facts are brought forward,” he said.

Premier Wab Kinew offered condolences on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“Violence among our youth has to stop,” he wrote. “We need to protect them and put them on a path to success so that more youth can reach their 18th birthday.”

Officer accompanied victim to surgery

Officers arrived moments after the attack and applied a chest seal while providing emergency care to the victim inside the Cargill Building.

Paramedics took her to the hospital, where she underwent emergency surgery, but did not survive.

A police officer accompanied her in the ambulance and was with her in the operating room.

Michalyshen said police are occasionally present while a victim undergoes surgery.

“He was on hand to support her in any way possible,” the officer said, noting the victim’s young age.

In some cases, an officer accompanies a victim for “investigative continuity,” Michalyshen added.

“You just never know what kind of information could be shared at any time,” he said.

The girl, who was Indigenous, had been in the child welfare system and had moved between homes in northern Manitoba and Winnipeg, her former foster mother said.

On Monday, police Chief Danny Smyth said the girl had been reported missing in the past. He said she was not a missing person at the time she was slain.

More than 200 child deaths reported this year

Gott said her office will conduct an initial assessment of the girl’s history and, if criteria is met, proceed to a “full scope” review of any services provided to her.

The advocate has a legislative mandate to review a child’s death if the person received a reviewable service, such as child and family services, mental health, addictions or youth justice, in the year before their death.

“We would look at what kind of services this child would have accessed,” said Gott. “We would review any information from those public service systems, if they’ve been involved with her.”

She expressed concern about an increase in child deaths in Manitoba. Her office was notified about 215 deaths (of youth aged 17 and under) in the 2022-23 fiscal year, a recent annual report says.

The total for the previous year was 163.

The deaths include from all causes, such as disease, drowning, suicide and traffic fatalities.

Gott repeated her calls for increased supports for youth, including a mental health strategy.

Manitoba’s NDP government, which has been in office for two months, has promised to introduce more measures to help children and adults in need.

Last month’s throne speech mentioned plans to transform child welfare.

Reports of youth violent crime in 2022 were 43 per cent higher than 2021 and about 25 per cent higher than the five-year average, says the latest annual report by Winnipeg police.

The report said Winnipeg has a reported knife crime incident every six hours, on average.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca