Christopher Husbands takes stand in Eaton Centre murder trial

Christopher Husbands, who is on trial for first-degree murder in the Eaton Centre shootings, took the stand in his own defence on Monday.

Under questioning by his defence lawyer, Husbands described what it was like growing up in Canada’s largest public housing neighbourhood, Regent Park.

The 25-year-old has pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Ahmed Hassan, 24, and Nixon Nirmalendran, 22, in June 2012. He also pleaded not guilty to five counts of aggravated assault, one of criminal negligence causing bodily harm and one of recklessly discharging a firearm.

Born in Guyana, he moved to Toronto to be with his father when he was 11. He was in and out of several high schools but dropped out when he got a young woman pregnant and had to support their daughter who’s now six years old.

He started smoking pot in school and began dealing marijuana because he needed money, he said. By 17, he was a crack dealer, which was more profitable.

Regent Park was rife with firearms and he spoke of holding guns and hiding them in his backyard for adult males in exchange for cash.

He told the court he needed the money and “sometimes you didn’t have a choice.”

According to the Crown, the shooting was the result of bad blood between Husbands and Nirmalendran and his friends.

The animosity stemmed from an incident several months earlier in which several men stabbed and robbed Husbands at an east-end home.

Selling drugs in Regent Park was a dangerous business, Husbands said, discussing when he was stabbed.

Husbands said that following the attack he began to have thoughts of suicide and would have flashbacks of the event.

“(I felt) Like I’m walking right back into the same trap again,” he told the court.” I didn’t understand who I was, I was blaming myself.”

Husbands said he also became claustrophobic on the TTC and often felt nervous and panicky. To cope with the feelings he said he tried to distract himself with music and began drinking and smoking pot on a daily basis.

He said things got so bad he couldn’t go to work anymore, which led to drinking at home and prompted suicidal thoughts saying he felt like “walking and killing myself.”

Husbands said he wouldn’t tell police who stabbed him because, “it’s a code of silence kind of thing, and a fear for my safety kind of thing.”

Husbands claims there were six attackers including, the deceased Nirmalendran, Nirmalendran’s brother Nisan, Ahmed Nuri and De-Andre Campbell. They wore masks but he says he saw them.

Husbands was in a sexual relationship with Campbell’s mother but he doesn’t believe that was the motive for his stabbing.

The Crown in its opening statement told the court that what prompted that attack is unclear, but it may have been Husbands’ relationship with his friend’s mother, a drug deal gone sour or he had offended someone.

The defence has argued Husbands was indeed responsible for the deaths and injuries but that it was a “chance encounter” with a group of five men that prompted him to open fire.

With files from Marianne Boucher and The Canadian Press

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