Brittain to plead guilty
John Brittain will plead guilty to four counts of murder in connection with an April 2019 shooting spree in Penticton, his lawyer said Monday on what was to have been the first day of trial in B.C. Supreme Court.
Defence counsel Paul McMurray did not offer a reason for his client’s change of heart, which scuttled a planned four-week trial in front of a judge alone.
Brittain, 69, is expected to formally enter the pleas to three counts of first-degree murder and one count of second-degree murder on Oct. 14 at the start of a twoday sentencing hearing.
First-degree murder carries with it a mandatory sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.
Crown counsel Colin Forsyth declined outside court Monday to state if he’ll seek to have the sentences run consecutively.
Brittain was not present for Monday’s session, which lasted only about 10 minutes and was staged in a high-security Kelowna courtroom.
McMurray, who attended by phone from Vancouver, told the judge he doesn’t expect anyone on Brittain’s side to attend the sentencing hearing.
Several members of the victims’ families were in court Monday, but declined comment.
The shooting spree April 15, 2019, began mid-morning when Brittain allegedly walked out of his rental home on Lakeview Street and shot Rudi Winter, who was in the area doing maintenance at a friend’s home.
Brittain then drove approximately five minutes to Cornwall Drive, where he allegedly shot Susan and Barry Wonch and Darlene Knippelberg
All four victims were in their 60s and 70s, and were neighbours of Brittain’s estranged wife, Katherine Brittain.
Brittain then drove himself to the RCMP detachment and turned himself in at the front counter, according to police.
Mounties at the time said Brittain knew the victims, but never suggested a motive.
An engineer by trade, Brittain retired from the City of Penticton in 2014, but later did some parttime work for Ecora Engineering.
Mayor John Vassilaki at an April 2019 press conference described Brittain as a “gentleman” who “did his job well.”
“I’ve never known him to raise his voice or be mean to anyone or anything like that,” Vassilaki said at the time.
“He was a gentle person who wouldn’t hurt a fly.”