NANAIMO, B.C. — A man who fatally shot two former co-workers and injured two others at a sawmill in Nanaimo, B.C., has been handed four life sentences.
Kevin Addison, 50, was found guilty of two counts each of first-degree murder and attempted murder after using a sawed-off shotgun at Western Forest Products on the morning of April 30, 2014.
Addison, who will not be eligible for parole for 25 years, declined to address B.C. Supreme Court on Friday when Justice Robin Baird asked if he had anything to say.
His defence lawyer had told the court his client suffered from depression, but Baird called the killings planned, systematic and ruthless, adding depression alone does not explain Addison's actions.
More than a dozen impact statements were presented during the sentencing hearing.
Marlene Lunn, whose husband Michael Lunn was killed, addressed Addison directly, saying she's not angry with him and that his family has lost a lot, too.
"We were so lucky to have him in our lives for as long as we did," Lunn said of her husband outside court.
Other members of the Lunn family said in victim-impact statements that every loud bang reminds them of what happened and Addison made a selfish decision that affected many lives.
The trial heard Addison fired a shot at Michael Lunn as he emerged from his truck in the Western Forest Products parking lot.
He then walked into the mill's office where he shot Tony Sudar in the face and both Fred McEachern and Earl Kelly in the back.
McEachern managed to hit Addison over the head with a chair but later died of his injuries, the trial heard.
His wife, Lorraine McEachern, called her husband a hero.
"I just want to thank everybody for the support," she said outside court.
Addison's defence lawyer, John Gustafson, had asked the jury to find Addison guilty of manslaughter.
He said that while there was no doubt his client fired the gun that killed Lunn and McEachern, the attack wasn't premeditated and intentional and therefore should not qualify as first-degree murder.
The Crown argued revenge motivated Addison to carry out the attack after he was laid off in 2008.
Crown lawyer Scott Van Alstine said Friday that he was struck by the eloquent victim statements.
"It seemed to me that person after person talked about the effect of this crime on Nanaimo and on people they knew, and on their families."
