Vancouver festival attack suspect to appear in court on Friday

The suspect in the street festival attack that killed 11 people in Vancouver will appear in provincial court in the city onFriday, just hours before a memorial mass to pray for the victims of the tragedy.

Premier David Eby said Thursday that the suspect in the case, 30-year-old Adam Kai-Ji Lo, "should spend the rest of his God damned life in jail."

Lo had previously been scheduled to appear in court on May 26, after making his first appearance by video on Sunday, the day after the attack.

But Damienne Darby with the British Columbia Prosecution Service said that Lo's lawyer had requested the next appearance be moved ahead.

She could not confirm the nature of Friday's appearance, but a listing on the Court Services Online portal shows Lo is due tomake an application to the court.

Darby said Lo's language rights were canvassed during his first court appearance, after which he has remained incustody.

Lo faces eight counts of second-degree murder after allegedly driving an SUV through a crowd of people at the Filipino community's Lapu Lapu Day street festival on Saturday, leaving 11 people dead and dozens injured. 

Vancouver police have said more charges are expected.

Friday's mass at the Holy Rosary Cathedral in Vancouver at 5:10 p.m. is part of a provincial day of remembrance and mourning for the victims.

Eby, who is expected to attend the mass, said the day of mourning would give people time to reflect on those who died and show solidarity with the Filipino community.

Eby, who was a human rights lawyer before going into politics, delivered a full-throated denunciation of the suspectduring question period in the legislature on Thursday.

He was responding to Conservative Peter Milobar, who asked why Eby could voice his opinion on the suspect when government had said in the past that it couldn't discuss the deaths of children or seniors in care because matters were before the courts.

Eby said he struggled to understand Milobar’s position.

“Because my opinion is that the man made the decision todrive a vehicle into a crowd of children, parents, and seniors, volunteers, kill them," said Eby.

"He’s facing eight charges of murder. In my opinion, he’s a murderer. It’s my opinion that he should spend the rest of his life in custody.”

Eby said that he would respect whatever decision was ultimately made by the courts, "but it will not change my opinion that this man did a despicable thing, did the most hateful thing."

He said the suspect "ruined the work of thousands of people and traumatized thousands more, that he stole children from parents, parents from children," his voice growing louder.

“I will stand up for the Filipino community, I will stand (up for) the victims and I will stand up for every right-minded, morally clear British Columbian and say that that man should spend the rest of his God damned life in jail.”

Health officials have said Lo was under the care of a mental health team, and Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said Lo was on"extended leave," a term used to refer to people under involuntary care, at the time of the attack.

Steve Rai, Vancouver's interim police chief, has said Lo had numerous interactions with police and mental health workers before the attack.

Jonny Morris, the CEO of the Canadian Mental Health Association's B.C. division, said there is "real fear" of reactionary moves in response to the attack that may not have the impact people are seeking.

But these could add to stigma around mental health, he said.

"I'm picking up fears that … because of the way it's being framed, without the analysis of the system beyond the individual, will stigma increase?" he said.

"We've seen that after incidents like this. Will discrimination increase? Will employers say, 'Oh, you have a mental illness. Oh, you might be violent. I'm not going to hire you.' And what about landlords and people with mental illness? 'Oh, we don't want you living in our building because of your mental illness.' 

"Because that's how stigma works. That's how discrimination works."

Eby has promised a review of B.C.'s Mental Health Act and said there will be "full public inquiry" if the criminal case does not lead to answers.

Sim said Wednesday that the case pointed to a "deeper failure in the mental health system" and that people are "sick and tired" of inquiries into a recurring pattern of people in a mental health crisis becoming involved in violence.

Morris said any examination of the situation should be a systemic review of all factors that contributed and how the system can be improved.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Rich Lam