Inquest into death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet hears from police

A coroner's inquest is underway to determine the cause of death for Regis Korchinski-Paquet, a Toronto woman who fell from a 24th-floor balcony while police were inside her residence. The inquest has heard testimony from Const. Shane Beaudoin, one of the officers who responded to the call.

Const. Beaudoin volunteered to serve as backup when a high-priority call for an assault involving knives was received on May 27, 2020. Upon arrival, he met another officer from a different division outside the building and entered the home together after the resident granted permission.

The situation proved challenging for the officers, as there was a significant amount of information to process, and it was difficult to determine the primary aggressor in the conflict, which was described as a family dispute. Beaudoin noted that the nature of the dispute made the circumstances "more murky."

He mentioned that he had been informed prior to his arrival that Korchinski-Paquet had experienced seizures earlier in the day. However, it was only during the inquest that he learned about postictal delirium, a mental state that can follow a seizure, which she was later found to have exhibited.

The inquest heard that Korchinski-Paquet had a history of seizures due to epilepsy and often experienced confusion, verbally abusive behavior, and temporary amnesia following her seizures. A neurologist who examined her medical records testified that she displayed symptoms consistent with postictal delirium or postictal psychosis on several occasions.