First responders testify at manslaughter trial

As paramedics wheeled Warren Todd McLeod out of a cramped downtown apartment on a stretcher, the woman who would later be charged in his death told a police officer he “deserved it,” the officer testified Tuesday.

Joelle Marie Reich, 50, is on trial for manslaughter, failing to provide the necessaries of life and criminal negligence causing her boyfriend’s death.

McLeod, 47, was rushed to hospital after first responders arrived at Reich’s apartment at 10027 114 St. on March 18, 2015, in response to an emergency call and found him unresponsive, lying on the floor. He died in hospital in February 2016, and a news release from police saying charges were laid against Reich that summer noted that a medical examiner determined the cause of his death was head injuries.

While being questioned by Crown prosecutor Anders Quist, Staff Sgt. Mark Fay testified Tuesday that he arrived as McLeod was being taken out of the apartment to the hospital. He said he encountered Reich, who was sitting in her unit drinking a beer. He asked her to come out of the suite and speak to him in the hallway so that she wouldn’t contaminate the scene.

After asking her for her name and birthdate, Fay said Reich, who smelled strongly of alcohol, abruptly told him, “He had a rag in my mouth and he was hitting me in the head.”

Fay said he tried to keep her engaged in “small talk” so that proper questioning could be completed later in a controlled environment, but Reich also told him, “He deserved it” as McLeod was taken out.

Defence lawyer Lindsay Tate pressed Fay on why the phrase “he deserved it” wasn’t in his handwritten notes taken at the scene, but added into a written report 11 days later.

“I would say I took it in vain that it was not a culpable statement,” Fay responded, adding that it wasn’t good police practice.

Firefighters and paramedics who were the first to arrive at the apartment also gave evidence about statements Reich made to them. She told Edmonton Fire Rescue Capt. Garry Lozar that two days prior McLeod choked her, and then she called friends who went over and beat McLeod up.

Parts of a 911 call between Reich and a dispatcher were played in court, in which Reich explains that her friends attacked McLeod when they arrived and saw blood on her face. None of the first responders who testified Wednesday noted any injuries on Reich.

When police announced charges against Reich, investigators were still searching for two male suspects. A man was later charged in connection to McLeod’s death, but the prosecution against him didn’t proceed.

The trial is expected to continue Wednesday.