Julia MacIsaac was a gentle and compassionate soul. Even though she had moved on years earlier to a new relationship, she allowed her troubled ex-boyfriend to live in her Scarborough home because he had nowhere else to go.
For safety, the medical lab technologist put a lock on her bedroom door. Tragically, it would not be enough to save her.
In a downtown courtroom filled with MacIsaac's grieving family and friends on Friday, David Slinger admitted he repeatedly banged on her door and forced his way inside in the early hours of March 14, 2024.
Struck repeatedly with a baseball bat
According to an agreed statement of facts read into court, a video camera in the stairwell captured audio of MacIsaac screaming, followed by her voice being muffled and then a series of loud bangs. During this time, Slinger started choking her, then repeatedly struck her with a baseball bat on her body and head.
The unkempt and overweight former construction worker, now 48, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, which carries an automatic life sentence. Superior Court Justice Maureen Forestell imposed 12 years of parole ineligibility, a term recommended jointly by the Crown and defence.
In her ruling, the judge noted that a weapon was used against an unarmed, defenceless and vulnerable victim. The murder was committed in the victim's home, a place that should be a place of safety and security. She added that if not for Slinger's mental health issues and his guilty plea, the parole ineligibility period would have been higher.
Hoped to be found not criminally responsible
Slinger had initially hoped to be found not criminally responsible due to a mental condition. When he called 911 shortly after the murder, he said he was in a psychosis and had just strangled and beaten his roommate. However, a forensic psychiatrist hired by the defence said he suffers from bipolar disorder but did not meet the stringent criteria for not criminally responsible.
Three days before the slaying, Slinger had been discharged from hospital after treatment for suicidal thoughts. MacIsaac, 42, was worried about him returning to her townhouse on Scarborough Golf Club Road, south of Kingston Road. According to the agreed statement, she told his sister and her current partner that she was concerned about his behaviour and was uneasy about him living with her, but he had nowhere to go.
MacIsaac loyal to a fault
Her older brother, Michael MacIsaac, said she was loyal to a fault. He told the court that he had urged her to get rid of her anchor, but she would not, calling this dark soul her best friend. He said he knew this anchor was pulling her under, but she was a great swimmer; he just did not think it would make her drown.
In many emotional victim impact statements, the court heard that MacIsaac was a vegan, a Buddhist, a fan of Lord of the Rings, and an animal lover who had rescued two chinchillas. She had overcome numerous challenges in her life: her father died when she was just 13, and in 2013 she was assaulted by a former boyfriend, which led to issues with alcohol. She overcame it all, earning two post-secondary degrees and establishing a career in microbiology research.
Her older sister Jennie, a touring musician, recalled one of the last gifts MacIsaac gave her was a lock for her hotel room doors. She wanted her to be safe, thinking about her life and travels and how to protect her. Fighting back tears, Jennie said she was her older sister and could not protect her.
Unbearable knowing sister's life ended so violently
As Slinger listened with his head in his hands, Jennie said it was unbearable to know her sister's life ended so violently in a place where she should have been safe. Her thoughts constantly return to Julia, what she must have gone through, the fear she must have felt, and her final moments. Those thoughts do not stop; they follow her everywhere.
Her brother Matthew MacIsaac said the horrible irony is that Slinger killed the one person who probably cared most about him in the world. He said there is no just world where given the choice, David is here and Julia is not. He cannot make this make sense.
Offered a chance to speak, Slinger had nothing to say.
