Why was Glen Race guilty of murder in America, but not in Canada?

Date: August 18, 2016

Photo Credit To The Canadian Press

A Canadian man battling severe mental illness crossed the border during a killing spree, including the murder of two Halifax gay men. So why were there two very different verdicts?

On May 1, 2007, Glen Race spent the day at his new apartment in the north end of Halifax. He ran errands, taking out books on Mexico and Belize from the library and withdrawing cash from his bank account, according to court records that documented his activity that day and in the weeks that followed. He would later tell doctors that he had been summoned by God to wage war on demons and cleanse the world of sin.

That afternoon, Paul Knott, 44, a retired navy cook who had served overseas, was shopping with his 17-year-old daughter, Jennifer. As evening approached, Knott dropped Jennifer off at work, kissed her goodbye, and told her he would see her at home later.

Sometime that night, Knott and Race crossed paths on Citadel Hill in downtown Halifax, a military fort and national historic site that is a known meeting place for gay men. Both Knott and Race’s second victim were gay, but early theories that the killings were motivated by hate would be dismissed after extensive psychiatric evaluation. Race told doctors later that he chose the men because they were easy targets.

2007-05 Murders

Timeline of events related to the murder of two men, 44 year old Michael Paul Knott of Timberlea, and 45 year old Trevor Charles Brewster in Halifax in May, 2007. Glen Douglas Race, 26 years old at the time, was charged with the murders.