Man charged in Winnipeg mass shooting has history of psychotic episodes: court documents

A man accused of killing four people and seriously injuring another in a recent Winnipeg shooting has a history of psychotic episodes linked to seizures and substance use, according to court documents.

Those episodes ended in hospitalization more than once for Jamie Randy Felix, including an incident in March 2022 where he attempted suicide while in a psychotic state, according to a pre-sentence report completed ahead of a hearing in March of this year.

That report said Felix had been diagnosed with alcohol use disorder and depression. Felix, now 32, admitted to using crack cocaine once at the end of 2022 and also told a probation officer he would occasionally use cocaine while on an alcohol binge — substance use that often contributed to his psychotic episodes, the report said.

He was charged last week with four counts of second-degree murder and one count of attempted murder in connection with a deadly Nov. 26 shooting at a rooming house in Winnipeg's West Broadway area.

Melelek Leseri Lesikel, 29, Dylan Maxwell Lavallee, 41, and sisters Crystal Shannon Beardy, 34, and Stephanie Amanda Beardy, 33, were killed in the Langside Street home. A 55-year-old man who was also shot is still in hospital in serious condition, police said in an email on Wednesday.

Officers said last week they arrested Felix at a home in south Winnipeg's St. Vital area early Friday morning, but have since provided few details about their investigation.

'Slipped through the cracks'

A longtime friend of both Felix and his twin brother, who was murdered in 2012, said the accused's seizure disorder and his struggles with substance use worked together to fuel and exacerbate his manic episodes.

When he was out binge drinking, he would often stop taking his prescribed seizure medication, said Autumn Beardy.

Officers blocked off part of Langside Street after the deadly shooting on Nov. 26. (Prabhjot Singh Lotey/CBC)

"He got really, really risky during his down-and-out manic phases, which would be polar opposite from what he was doing in his life, what he was achieving, like running men's groups or running physical health groups for men," said Beardy, who met Felix at a modelling class more than a decade ago and was his twin brother's roommate at the time of his murder.

"If he was in a manic or psychotic state, he'd become very transient — like losing touch with what meant something to him, like a stable home or keeping his job."

Beardy, 34, said Felix was never the same after his brother's death, but he worked hard to live a productive, healthy life.

Earlier this year, during proceedings on a charge of assault causing bodily harm — which Felix pleaded guilty to — court heard he spent 11 years with the Canadian Armed Forces and worked with Strength in the Circle, a support group for young Indigenous men in Winnipeg.

But Beardy said Felix struggled to get the mental health support he needed and around December each year, "like clockwork," he would experience a particularly difficult time as his and his brother's shared birthday approached.

Autumn Beardy says she met Jamie Felix at a modelling class more than a decade ago and was his twin brother's roommate at the time of his murder. (Submitted by Autumn Beardy)

Felix's pre-sentence report said he entered a residential addictions treatment program at the end of 2022, but left for a medical appointment one day and didn't return. When he later called back asking if he could rejoin, he was told he would have to demonstrate continuous commitment to the program and go through the regular intake process again, according to the report.

Felix was always trying to get better, Beardy said, including as recently as this past summer when he completed an addictions treatment program in Peguis First Nation. That's where she last saw him, while she was attending powwows, she said.

With Felix now charged in a deadly shooting just a few months later, Beardy said she feels like he "slipped through the cracks" of the systems he looked to for help.

Both wearing orange, Roberta Owen, left, stands with her sister, Beverley Beardy, as community members support families of the victims of the mass shooting in West Broadway. Beverley's daughters Stephanie and Crystal were among those killed. (Tyson Koschik/CBC)

"He's tried so many times to get better. He's tried so many times to be productive and have a stable life and have a clean life, and trying to heal," she said.

"He was homeless a lot of the time, and he always wanted to continue to keep giving to other people, even though he didn't come from a place of having anything."

'Sometimes I want him to go to jail'

Felix's mother was also concerned about her son's drug use, according to the pre-sentence report prepared for him earlier this year.

"Sometimes I want him to go to jail because he has to learn about his actions," Mary Felix told the probation officer who wrote the report.

"On the other hand, I would say [he needs] treatment because he's still dealing with his addictions."

Felix's mother said she left his father when the twins were about three years old, according to the pre-sentence report. But the boys later ended up being raised by their father from the ages of about five to 10 — something their mother voiced regret about.

The report said Felix described being "exposed to the gang lifestyle" throughout his childhood.

The assault charge Felix pleaded guilty to stemmed from a 2021 incident at an apartment party, where a drunk man fell down a flight of stairs during a "scuffle" as Felix and another person tried to remove the man from the party, the report said.

The man spent nine days in hospital and suffered from some memory loss related to the night in question, and random dizziness, but otherwise made a full recovery, court later heard at Felix's sentencing earlier this year.

A tribute to victim Melelek Leseri Lesikel was placed outside a rooming house on Langside Street, the scene of the mass shooting. (Tyson Koschik/CBC)

Felix was given a two-year suspended sentence and supervised probation. It was the only mark on his criminal record before the deadly Nov. 26 shooting.

Felix is scheduled to appear in court next on Dec. 15.

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