CALGARY — The fate of a Calgary man, who claims he was suffering a psychotic episode when he stabbed and killed a woman three years ago, is in the hands of a jury.
Michael Adenyi, 29, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the death of Vanessa Ladouceur. The fitness instructor was walking to work when she was attacked on a downtown street in 2022.
Adenyi has said he was hallucinating and believed he was attacking a creature. His lawyers have argued he's not criminally responsible due to a mental disorder.
The trial heard Adenyi followed Ladouceur for nearly two blocks before bodychecking her into an alcove and stabbing her several times, including six wounds to the face. She died from blood loss.
In her five-hour charge, Justice Jane Sidnell said the jury has four possible verdicts. It must first determine if Adenyi is not criminally responsible.
"Mr. Adenyi relies on having suffered from a mental disorder at the time of the offence that rendered him incapable of appreciating the nature and quality of the attack on Vanessa Ladouceur or of knowing that the attack on Vanessa Ladouceur was wrong," Sidnell said Friday.
"Mr. Adenyi has the burden to prove his NCR defence. If you find that Mr. Adenyi has not proven his NCR defence, then you will consider the charge that Mr. Adenyi faces."
Sidnell said the jury must then consider whether Adenyi is guilty of manslaughter, second-degree murder or first-degree murder. She urged jurors to use their common sense and to concentrate only on the evidence heard at trial.
"There will be no more evidence. It is your duty to decide if Mr. Adenyi has proven that it is more likely than not that he is not criminally responsible due to a mental disorder at the time the crime was committed," she said.
"You must make your decision on a rational and fair consideration and not on passion, sympathy or prejudice against Mr. Adenyi, the Crown or anyone else connected to this matter."
The Crown has said that Adenyi is guilty, that the attack was planned and he did not tell the truth about his memories of the attack when he testified during the trial and to mental health professionals after his arrest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 2, 2025.
Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press
