A former Edmonton police chief whose son recently admitted in court that he killed his former girlfriend says he prays for the woman, her family and others who his son is also accused of assaulting.
John Lindsay and his wife said in a statement that they are both "very greatly saddened by the profound pain of all who have suffered" from the events that have been described during testimony this month.
Mark Lindsay is on trial in Kamloops for assaulting an undercover police officer in B.C.
He is also charged with second-degree murder in the killing of 31-year-old Dana Turner last year and with assault for stabbing a prisoner in the eye during a game of Scrabble at a B.C. jail.
Judge Dev Dley of the B.C. Supreme Court has ordered a psychiatric assessment for Lindsay, who told the court he committed the crimes because he was being threatened by serial killers.
John Lindsay is now a Catholic deacon in the Archdiocese of Edmonton, and he and his wife, Louise, said in their statement that illness has prevented them from attending their son's trial.
They said that as parents, they still love their son.
Lindsay was Edmonton police chief from 1995 to 2000.
On Thursday, Lindsay's lawyer, Don Campbell, said the judge ordered the psychiatric assessment to help determine if Lindsay is not criminally responsible for his actions because of a mental disorder.
The 30-day psychiatric assessment will be conducted in Vancouver.
Campbell said Lindsay will still appear in court next week on the assault charge involving another prisoner at the Kamloops Regional Correctional Centre last fall.
Lindsay told court he killed Turner in a panic before dumping her body, which was found last October in a field near Innisfail, Alta. He said he believed she was a serial killer and his life was in danger.
