Pastor drowned pregnant wife: Crown
By Sam Pazzano, Toronto Sun
First posted: Monday, November 17, 2014 08:26 PM EST | Updated: Monday, November 17, 2014 08:37 PM EST
A Baptist pastor and nurse drugged his pregnant wife and drowned her in their bathtub to prolong an extra-marital affair with his wife’s friend, a Crown attorney said Monday.
Philip Grandine, 28, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Anna “Karissa” Grandine, 29, who was 20 weeks pregnant when she died Oct. 17, 2011 at their Scarborough home.
In her opening jury address, Crown attorney Donna Kellway outlined the case against Grandine who maintained an affair with Eileen Florentino before and after his wife’s death.
Kellway alleged Grandine gave his wife a sedative called lorazepam — or Ativan — on at least two occasions in the days leading up to her death. She was never prescribed the drug.
The woman had a bump on her right scalp — which could have been inflicted by a fall or blow, said Kellway. A pathologist is expected to testify that the injury itself couldn’t have directly caused her death, but it could have rendered her unconscious and — with the lorazepam — contributed to her drowning, court heard.
Grandine took a one-hour jog on Oct. 17, 2011, starting at 9:45 p.m. When he returned, he found his wife in the bathtub, under the water and not breathing, said Kellway.
“Mr. Grandine had not removed the water from the tub, hadn’t removed Karissa nor attempted any life-saving measures,” said Kellway.
The dead woman had two prescription medications, one for pregnancy nausea and an antibiotic. She had traces of lorazepam in her system both three days before her death and at the time of her demise, court heard.
Ativan or lorazepam causes drowsiness, sedation, reduced muscle control, impaired memory and dizziness, court heard. Karissa Grandine suffered from some of these symptoms three days before her death. She visited St. Mike’s emergency room after falling out of bed and vomiting, court heard.
Kellway said Philip Grandine had access to lorazepam or Ativan as he was the nurse manager at the O’Neill Centre in Toronto, a seniors’ residence where he was responsible for distributing medications to residents.
Shortly before his wife’s death, Grandine was forced to step down as pastor of Ennerdale Baptist Church because he was having an extra-marital affair with a parishoner Florentino, who was also his wife’s friend, said Kellway.
Despite the fact that Florentino was ostracized by many of her friends because of the affair, Grandine and Florentino kept seeing each after Karissa Grandine’s death, said Kellway.
The Grandines were undergoing marital counselling with a condition prohibiting him from watching pornography. Karissa Grandine installed a filtering system on his computer to stop his habit, said Kellway.
He removed the filter, but the system kept a record of searches in the week before it was deactivated, court heard.
A user logged on to the computer to an account linked to Philip Grandine on Oct.10, 2011, asking “Would 100 mg of Ativan be fatal?”
Another minute later, a second search asked, “Would 85 mg of Ativan be fatal?”
The trial resumes Tuesday.
sam.pazzano@sunmedia.ca
Philip Grandine, 28, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Anna “Karissa” Grandine, 29. (ABOUT IMAGE PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTO)
Pastor drowned pregnant wife: Crown | Toronto & GTA | News | Toronto Sun
pastord.
By Sam Pazzano, Toronto Sun
First posted: Monday, November 17, 2014 08:26 PM EST | Updated: Monday, November 17, 2014 08:37 PM EST
A Baptist pastor and nurse drugged his pregnant wife and drowned her in their bathtub to prolong an extra-marital affair with his wife’s friend, a Crown attorney said Monday.
Philip Grandine, 28, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Anna “Karissa” Grandine, 29, who was 20 weeks pregnant when she died Oct. 17, 2011 at their Scarborough home.
In her opening jury address, Crown attorney Donna Kellway outlined the case against Grandine who maintained an affair with Eileen Florentino before and after his wife’s death.
Kellway alleged Grandine gave his wife a sedative called lorazepam — or Ativan — on at least two occasions in the days leading up to her death. She was never prescribed the drug.
The woman had a bump on her right scalp — which could have been inflicted by a fall or blow, said Kellway. A pathologist is expected to testify that the injury itself couldn’t have directly caused her death, but it could have rendered her unconscious and — with the lorazepam — contributed to her drowning, court heard.
Grandine took a one-hour jog on Oct. 17, 2011, starting at 9:45 p.m. When he returned, he found his wife in the bathtub, under the water and not breathing, said Kellway.
“Mr. Grandine had not removed the water from the tub, hadn’t removed Karissa nor attempted any life-saving measures,” said Kellway.
The dead woman had two prescription medications, one for pregnancy nausea and an antibiotic. She had traces of lorazepam in her system both three days before her death and at the time of her demise, court heard.
Ativan or lorazepam causes drowsiness, sedation, reduced muscle control, impaired memory and dizziness, court heard. Karissa Grandine suffered from some of these symptoms three days before her death. She visited St. Mike’s emergency room after falling out of bed and vomiting, court heard.
Kellway said Philip Grandine had access to lorazepam or Ativan as he was the nurse manager at the O’Neill Centre in Toronto, a seniors’ residence where he was responsible for distributing medications to residents.
Shortly before his wife’s death, Grandine was forced to step down as pastor of Ennerdale Baptist Church because he was having an extra-marital affair with a parishoner Florentino, who was also his wife’s friend, said Kellway.
Despite the fact that Florentino was ostracized by many of her friends because of the affair, Grandine and Florentino kept seeing each after Karissa Grandine’s death, said Kellway.
The Grandines were undergoing marital counselling with a condition prohibiting him from watching pornography. Karissa Grandine installed a filtering system on his computer to stop his habit, said Kellway.
He removed the filter, but the system kept a record of searches in the week before it was deactivated, court heard.
A user logged on to the computer to an account linked to Philip Grandine on Oct.10, 2011, asking “Would 100 mg of Ativan be fatal?”
Another minute later, a second search asked, “Would 85 mg of Ativan be fatal?”
The trial resumes Tuesday.
sam.pazzano@sunmedia.ca
Philip Grandine, 28, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Anna “Karissa” Grandine, 29. (ABOUT IMAGE PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTO)
Pastor drowned pregnant wife: Crown | Toronto & GTA | News | Toronto Sun
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