Man shot by police during home invasion stole to fuel drug habit: lawyer

A man shot by police during ahome invasion where a Winnipeg teen died last week had a lengthy criminal record, "below average" IQ and often stole to fuel his drug addiction, CBC News has learned.

Ronald Chubb, 29, remains in hospital with critical injuries after being shot by police during an altercation in the city's West End March 2.

Jaime "Jimboy" Adao, 17, died. He'd been at home with his grandmother when a man forced his way into their house on McGee Street around 9 p.m. last Sunday.

As soon as the break-in started, Adao called 911. He was speaking with dispatchers when the intruder got inside and began attacking the teen with a weapon.

Dispatchers heard it allandpromptly sent out officers. The attack was ongoing as police arrived, and they shot a male suspect several times.

Chubb remains in hospital, at last word in critical condition.

He has not been charged with any criminal offences related to the incident.

History of break-and-enters

Chubb's criminal record includes at least 11break-and-enter convictions, dating back to 2008.

His criminal history also includes seven convictions of theft, most of which happened during the break and enters. He was convicted on one count of motor vehicle theft in January 2010.

Chubb's most recent arrest in November 2017 resulted in him being charged with assault of a peace officer and possession ofa concealed weapon.

His girlfriend at the time called the cops on Chubb for allegedly using crystalmethamphetaminein her home. Officers arrived as Chubb was sleeping and court heard that he attacked them while they were trying to wake him up.

He was restrained and eventually arrested. While he was in custody, police testified that they found a pool ball wrapped in tape hidden in his waistband, alleging he created it to use as a weapon.

Struggled with drugs

Chubb had been battling a drug addiction for years prior, his lawyer Brett Gladstone told a 2016 sentencing hearing.

Gladstone said Chubb had a seriouscocaine addiction, a drughe often used with alcohol. He added that prescription pills like Xanax were a go-to for his client.

At the hearing, Chubb pleaded guilty to six break-and-enter charges at different apartment buildings in downtown Winnipeg. His modus operandi was the same in every case: gain access to an apartment building, then use a crowbar to break into the laundry room and try to steal the change from the machines.

The moneywould fuel his drug addiction, according to Gladstone.

Gladstone described Chubb as a someone with "below average" IQ and said he had been characterized as being a "vulnerable" person.

Troubled upbringing

Chubb had been diagnosed with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and struggled insocial settings, according to court testimony from his case worker.

In 2003, Chubb's brother John was beaten to death with a baseball bat in Winnipeg's West End. Chubb, then 13years old,was there and his arm was injured. The two brothers lived together in a foster home at the time.

Police said at the time the attack was not random, but did not believe it was gang-related.

Gladstone described Chubb's mother as someone "who drank till the day she died" and said that when she passed away in 2014, Chubb spiralled toward a life of crime.

Gladstone said Chubb'sloss of his mother, an estranged father and the killingof his older brotherleft him battling severe trauma throughout his life.

Helpful, 'positive' person in right situations, court hears

Both Chubb's lawyers and case worker from FASD disability services provider Life's Journey Maria Bromilow told court that he is a "positive" person, who could thrive in a structured environment.

They said that due to his lack of cognitive ability and social cues, he became "easily influenced" by those around him.

During her testimony, Bromilow recalled a story of Chubb going out of his way to check in on others.

"There was a person in a wheelchair, and he would grab him smokes, anything he needed, [Chubb] would help with," she said in court testimony.

Bromilow cited similar incidents, and said Chubb was someone "always trying to help others."

She declined to speak with CBC for this story.

Chubb was pending on probation breach charges

During his sentencing in 2016, Gladstone argued that rehabilitation rather than incarceration should be the desired result of the court if they intended to truly help Chubb.

He said the cyclical legal problems Chubbfound himself in could be avoided if he was sent to God's Lake Narrows First Nation, where his lawyer claimed he had family willing to take him in.

Gladstone argued that if Chubb could be taken away from his social circle the same one he fell back into every time he wasreleased from prison he could be rehabilitated.

According to court records, Chubb was currently wanted by police for allegedly failingto comply with conditions of probation orders.

He had been set to appear in court on those allegations this week.