Man convicted of killing father calls mandatory life sentence too severe

Warning: Readers may find some of the details in this article disturbing.

A year after Brad McKee was convicted of killing his father in Penetanguishene in 2019, his sentencing hearing got underway in a Barrie courtroom Monday, with McKee arguing the mandatory minimum life sentence is too severe.

The 32-year-old man claims the punishment is cruel and unusual and in violation of his charter rights.

The jury found McKee guilty last November, determining he confined his parents in the bedroom of their home before fatally stabbing his 59-year-old father, Bill McKee, in the neck when Bill tried to call for help on Feb. 11, 2019.

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McKee said in the days and weeks leading up to his father's death he felt someone was trying to sabotage his life, saying his brain was not working correctly and describing being "quite psychotic and insane," adding he had "lost touch with reality."

During the trial, it was revealed McKee's mother had managed to escape the home and sought help from a neighbour who called 911. When the police arrived, they found Brad McKee with a self-inflicted neck wound, asking officers and paramedics to let him die.

His mother, Anna McKee, has stood by her son's side, saying the system failed her family and cost Bill his life.

In an interview with CTV News earlier this year, she said her son struggled with mental health, and claimed several hospital officials turned him away as she and her husband tried to get him help.

Anna McKee insists her son never intended to kill his father as he appeals his murder conviction.

"My husband is dead, my son is disabled, and people have to open up their eyes. And I want to give a message to the prime minister and all the health ministers to get their act together," Anna McKee said in the January interview, revealing Brad tried several times to end his life, including in the weeks leading up to his father's death.

Brad McKee said he believes at times he is in hell or some kind of purgatory, claiming he's being tortured, hearing voices and being burned by lasers coming from the vents, which he does not believe are delusions.

The sentencing hearing will continue this week, with McKee's mother expected to testify on Wednesday.