Defence to seek mental assessment for accused in killings

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This article was published 23/02/2024 (567 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The defence for a Manitoba man accused of killing five family members, including his three young children, is expected to request a mental fitness assessment in court next week.

The case of Ryan Howard Manoakeesick, 29, was briefly heard in a Winnipeg courtroom Friday morning.

The defence lawyer for the man accused of the slayings in and near Carman nearly two weeks ago is expected to request an assessment of his mental fitness to answer to the charges during a court appearance Monday.

RCMP have charged Manoakeesick with five counts of first-degree murder for his alleged role in the Feb. 11 killings in Carman and two other locations in rural southern Manitoba.

A law student appearing on behalf of Winnipeg defence lawyer Laura Robinson in front of a judicial justice of the peace Friday asked for the Monday court date to request a fitness assessment. Manoakeesick was not at the hearing.

If ordered by the court, a fitness assessment would determine whether Manoakeesick is fit to stand trial and whether he was suffering from a mental disorder at the time of the crimes.

Manoakeesick has struggled with mental illness and addictions, past court records confirm.

The victims, Amanda Clearwater, 30, her three children— two-month-old Isabella, four-year-old Jayven and six-year-old Bethany — and Clearwater’s 17-year-old cousin, Myah-Lee Gratton, were laid to rest after a funeral service in Carman on Wednesday.

All five victims and Manoakeesick lived together in Carman, about 75 kilometres southwest of Winnipeg.

Clearwater’s death was initially reported as a hit-and-run incident at about 7:30 a.m. on Feb. 11. Her body was found in a ditch next to Highway 3, about seven kilometres south of Carman.

The three children were declared dead near a burning vehicle on Provincial Road 248, about 70 km north of Carman, at about 10 a.m. Manoakeesick was arrested near the vehicle, which RCMP said he had pulled his children from before being arrested.

Myah-Lee’s body was found inside the family home.

Manoakeesick has a limited criminal record, with one conviction in 2019 for mischief to property under $5,000, for which he received a conditional discharge and 18 months supervised probation.

He was under the influence of methamphetamine and “confused and delirious” when he entered a detached garage in East Elmwood in July 2019, accidentally locked himself inside and caused damage.

Manoakeesick was taken to Health Sciences Centre in a state of psychosis and released later that day. That evening, he was at a Tim Hortons restaurant on Portage Avenue when he told staff members to call police and threw a glass mug at an electronic display, shattering it. Staff locked themselves in a back room and called 911.

His lawyer at the time said Manoakeesick told him he struggled with anxiety and depression and that there could be further mental-health issues.

A provincial court judge ordered Manoakeesick at the time to undergo addictions and mental-health assessments while on probation.

He was more recently charged with two counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm. He has yet to answer to those offences in court.

Myah-Lee’s mother, Juliette Hastings, has called for answers from the provincial child-welfare system. In a recent interview, she said her warnings about Manoakeesick were ignored.

Her daughter had been staying with the family for about 10 months in a placement Hastings said was approved by CFS workers despite her warnings.

“I told (CFS) she shouldn’t be there; it’s not safe,” Hastings previously said, adding she knew Manoakeesick was violent.

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca

Erik Pindera
Reporter

Erik Pindera is a reporter for the Free Press, mostly focusing on crime and justice. The born-and-bred Winnipegger attended Red River College Polytechnic, wrote for the community newspaper in Kenora, Ont. and reported on television and radio in Winnipeg before joining the Free Press in 2020.  Read more about Erik.

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