Nurse testifies Raymond thought someone was in his room, was 'agitated' day after shooting

A nurse caring for Matthew Raymond the day after he killed four people says he was yelling that there was someone in his room, when no one was there.

Heather Hannon, a registered nurse at the Dr. Everett Chalmers Hospital in Fredericton, was one of three nurses who testified Friday at Raymond's quadruple murder trial.

She said after he became "agitated," she gave him Haldol, an antipsychotic medication.

Raymond, 50, is facing four charges of first-degree murder after he shot Donnie Robichaud and Bobbie Lee Wright, then Fredericton police constables Sara Burns and Robb Costello. He shot all four in a parking lot at 237 Brookside Dr. on Fredericton's north side on Aug. 10, 2018. 

Raymond has admitted to the killings but pleaded not guilty. His defence lawyers are arguing he was not criminally responsible because of a mental illness.

'I'm here for four murders they tell me'

Hannon said she was the nurse in charge of caring for Raymond on Aug. 11. Her shift started at 8 a.m., and she said for the first half of the day, Raymond was "calm and co-operative." He also had the highest score on the "GCS" test, which determines a patient's level of consciousness. He knew he was in the hospital, he knew it was August and he knew the year, she said.

She said fentanyl, a pain medication, was stopped sometime before she came on shift, but she couldn't testify to when or how long the effects last.

She said at around 2 p.m. Raymond told her  "I remember walking down the stairs and being in the ambulance." He also said "I'm here for four murders they tell me."

She said he started getting "agitated" in the late afternoon. She said he was requesting to have his compression devices that go on the legs taken off "right now," so she took them off. He was requesting water but he was not allowed anything by mouth at the time.

She said he was asking to have his shackles repositioned. He was saying "this is a violation of human rights." He also said "you are going to have a lawsuit, this is a violation of human rights."

She said Raymond was allowed to have some water to swish in his mouth. But later he started yelling "there's someone in the room with me." She told him "there's no one in the room with you."

Raymond then said "I'm not crazy, cut the bullshit." And "This is an invasion of privacy."

That's when a doctor ordered her to give the patient Haldol, she said, and she gave him two milligrams.

Hannon testified she had written down Raymond's comments soon after they were said, and she did her best to make sure they were verbatim.

Hannon and another nurse testified Friday that Haldol was discontinued when Raymond was discharged from the ICU on Aug. 13.

Autopsy results

Dr. Ken Obenson testified Friday about the extent of the gunshot injuries suffered by the four victims.

Obenson went through the autopsies he conducted on the four victims, starting with Costello.

He said Costello had five gunshot wounds to his head and torso. He said two gunshot wounds to the torso could have been fatal on their own.

He said the cause of Costello's death was multiple gunshot wounds to the torso, and "the manner of death" was homicide. 

Costello's family members, who were sitting in the gallery, cried during this testimony.

Obenson moved on to Burns's injuries. He said she was shot two times in the head. He said the cause of death was the first gunshot wound, and the second would not have been fatal on its own. He said the manner of death was homicide.

On Robichaud, Obenson said he found five gunshot wounds.

He said the cause of death was gunshot wounds to the head and torso, and the manner was homicide.

Obenson said Wright was shot once in the head and had a laceration on her left arm. The cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head, and the manner was homicide, he said.

The number of times the victims were shot, and the location of their injuries, and that Raymond shot them were all in an agreed statement of fact submitted at the beginning of the trial.

The Crown is nearing the end of its witness list, and is calling a technology crimes expert Monday morning.

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