Matthew de Grood deemed fit to stand trial
Accused ordered by judge to appear in court after psychological care
Dayla Brown
News Editor
Matthew de Grood has been charged in what the Calgary police Chief, Rick Hanson, has deemed as the “worst mass murder in Calgary’s history”. The accused 23-year-old has been charged with the deaths of five young people at Bermuda Shorts Day, an annual tradition house party that signifies end-of-year at the University of Calgary. The incident took place last April and de Grood has been held in custody since that time.
De Grood completed an initial psychiatric examination, which determined that he was fit to stand trial. This simply means that de Grood is competent enough to understand court proceedings and is not impaired due to mental illness.
De Grood also underwent two additional psychiatric examinations, of which the information has been withheld from the public due to a publication ban. This ban covers all evidence submitted at the preliminary hearing.
The two examinations will determine whether de Grood can be held criminally responsible for the alleged murders of Lawrence Hong, 27, Joshua Hunter, 23, Kaitlin Perras, 23, Zackariah Rathwell, 21, and Jordan Segura, 22.
