Accused triple murderer never attended domestic violence program despite 2013 order

A man accused of murdering three of his former partners was ordered two years earlier to attend a 12-week partner abuse responseprogram after threatening the family of one of the victims, but didn't attended a single session, his trial heard Wednesday.

NathalieWarmerdam, 48, Carol Culleton,66, and Anastasia Kuzyk, 36,were found dead at their homes in and around the small community of Wilno, Ont., on Sept. 22, 2015.

Culleton had been strangled with a television cable.Kuzyk and Warmderdam were shot in the neck with a 12-gauge shotgun.

Basil Borutski, 60, faces three counts of first-degree murder and is representing himself at his trial before a judge and jury in Ontario Superior Court in Ottawa. The court entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf after herefusedto enter one himself. He has not spoken in court.

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Wednesday morning, parole and probation officer Caroline Royer testified she started supervising Borutski in late December 2013, after he had already been on probation for nearly a year.

On probation for offences against 2 victims

Court earlier heard Borutskiwas on probation for threatening to hurt Warmerdam's son and kill their pet, as well as mischief to their property and disobeying a court order. His probation began Jan. 8, 2013and was set to end Jan. 7, 2015.

But in 2014 Borutskiwas once again placed on probation for another set of offences, Royer testified.

Court earlier heardit was for assaulting Kuzyk, trying to choke her, mischief to her property and failing to comply with his probation for the Warmerdamoffences, which hadn't yet expired.

The new probation commenced Dec. 27, 2014, and was set to end Dec. 26, 2016, more than a year after the killings.

'Nothing ever seemed to be going right for him'

Borutski and Royer would meet about every two weeks for 20 to 45 minutes at the Pembroke Probation and Parole Office on Lake Street, she told court.

"He was always polite. He was never rude. The reporting appointments were generally pleasant; negative as innothing ever seemed to be going right for him, but we would try to problem-solve around various ... problemshe was running into," she told court.

"Ifelt he was decent. I found that Mr. Borutski was, for the most part, appeared to be open. Initially the reporting appointments were short because he was angry, angry about reporting and about the system, but then eventually he just kind of warmed up."

The last time they metwas Sept. 4 or 14 in 2015, Royer told court.

"It was like any other appointment. We discussed how things were going," she said. He was working on getting transportation to Ontario Disability Support Program offices, and there was confusion about where he needed to report.

Never went to partner abuse response program

Under cross-examination by amicus curiae James Foord, the lawyer appointed to ensure Borutski gets a fair trial, Royer told courtBorutski had a mental health crisis worker and a long-term mental health case manager to deal with his anxiety.

She confirmed he was under financial pressure, had been having problems with housing, though those had been resolved, and was having trouble finding and affordingtransportation to services offered to him.

Under re-examination by Crown attorney Julie Scott,Royer testified that aspart of his first probation order he was supposedto undergo a 12-week Living Without Violence partner abuse response program in Eganville, Ont., which court earlier heardwasn't far from the Warmerdams.Two-hour group sessions were to take place once a week.

But Borutskinever attended a session, Royer told court.

"There was some confusion about the restrictions on where Mr. Borutskiwas allowed to go in the county, so that was being dealtwith," she testified.

Letter with'B. Borutski' on envelope arrives

The morning ofSept. 25, 2015,just days after the killings, a brown envelope arrived on Royer's desk in Pembroke addressed to Royer with the words "B. Borutski" on the other side.

• Read the full letter sent to Royer

After discussing the letter with colleagues, she decided to open and read it.

"I have been wrongfully accused of hurting, assaulting women numerous times that is not true," the letter reads. "I am a caringloving human being. I hate violence! I have been labelled wrongly. ALL my attempts to change that in our court system were in vane [sic].

"There is no justice on earth. The system is being used by women who are in a rage hate revenge. My ex-wife used the system 3 times. The first 2 I was found not guilty. But it didn't matter. You'd think the third time the authorities would of [sic] realized there's a pattern she's accusing again lets listen to him this time. Let's hear him help him. NOT! BLIND JUSTICE."

'I'm taking as many that have abused me as possible with me'

After a passage about the writer's former wife, the letter reads, "In every attempt at a normal relationship since I have been targeted judged by my RECORD not by who I AM.

"I have nothing left! Not even my dignity! It is a horrible thing to know you've done nothing wrong, In fact done everything right for your family and be condemned by the one's [sic] you love by the POLICE BY the courts, by society. There's no use living there is no JUSTICE. I AM LIVING IN HELL. When I told a judge I had a criminal record that shouldn't of [sic] existed, he basically said so what! TRY walking a mile in my shoe's [sic] with that record over your head.

"I CAN'T TAKE IT anymoreI'm getting out and I'm taking as many that have abused me as possible with me. JUSTICE."

Royer testified she called OPP and later dropped the letter off at the Pembroke detachment.

Trial resumes Nov. 14

Later Wednesday court also heard testimony from Jacqueline Osmond, a worker at the Centre of Forensic Sciences in Toronto. She told court she was tasked with comparing the letter sent to Royer and anotherletter sent to Culleton to writings found in Borutski's apartment.

Her report found "significant similarities" and "no fundamental difference" between them, court heard.

Osmond was unable to determine whether the writing matched a number of handwritten signs found throughout Culleton's cottage property where her body was also found.

The trial is expected to resume Nov. 14. Justice Robert Maranger reminded the jury to avoid media coverage of the trial during the break, to avoid researching the caseand to speak about the trialwith others only in general terms.