Particle.news
Download on the App Store
4 ARTICLES
·
last mo.

Crown Says Vancouver Starbucks Stabbing Accused Was Still Taking Schizophrenia Medication

The claim undercuts the defence argument that an unmedicated psychotic state reduced intent to manslaughter.

A person walks up the stairs of the Law Courts building, which is home to B.C. Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, is seen in Vancouver, on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns
A sheriff enters the Law Courts building, which is home to B.C. Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, is seen in Vancouver, on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns
Police speak to a man following the stabbing outside the Starbucks at Granville and Pender streets in downtown Vancouver.

Overview

  • Prosecutors, continuing closing arguments Wednesday, said pharmacy records show Inderdeep Singh Gosal filled prescriptions at normal intervals and remained on his meds.
  • Crown counsel argued Gosal lied when useful, citing inflated claims about alcohol, a shifting knife story to a “sign from God,” and self-serving accounts to doctors.
  • The defence told the court Tuesday that untreated schizophrenia distorted Gosal’s grasp of consequences, which points to manslaughter rather than second-degree murder.
  • Two forensic psychiatrists described his symptoms as moderate, and the Crown said neither found active psychosis, though they differed on whether he could foresee death.
  • The judge-alone trial before Justice Kathleen Ker turns on whether video and eyewitness accounts prove the intent for murder in the March 26, 2023 stabbing of Paul Schmidt, who was with his young daughter in a stroller.