Vancouver man guilty of manslaughter after fatal Starbucks patio stabbing in 2023

Inderdeep Singh Gosal was convicted of manslaughter, not second-degree murder, for fatally stabbing Paul Schmidt at a busy Vancouver Starbucks in March 2023.

Manslaughter verdict in fatal Vancouver Starbucks stabbing

A B.C. Supreme Court judge has found Inderdeep Singh Gosal guilty of manslaughter in the fatal stabbing of Paul Schmidt, who was killed on the patio of a Vancouver Starbucks in March 2023. Vancouver Sun Crime reports that Gosal had originally been charged with second-degree murder, but Justice Kathleen Ker determined the evidence did not support the higher charge.

Schmidt was at the café on Georgia and Granville streets with his fiancée and young daughter when he confronted Gosal about smoking near his toddler. A short altercation followed, after which Gosal stabbed Schmidt six times in front of numerous bystanders. Schmidt handed his daughter to his fiancée before the fight began.

Confession but contested intent

Gosal admitted to the stabbing both to police and on the stand. Within minutes of the attack, he told officers, "I did it, he came at me." At trial, he testified that Schmidt had attacked him first and that he feared for his life.

The central legal question was whether Gosal had the requisite intent for murder. His defence argued he was in an "unmedicated medical state" — having failed to take his antipsychotic medication — and was experiencing fear and paranoia at the time. The defence pushed for a manslaughter finding on those grounds.

Prosecutor Karin Blok countered that security footage capturing 24 seconds of the stabbing and the events immediately preceding it showed Gosal as the aggressor, both physically and verbally. Blok also identified several inconsistencies between Gosal's testimony and his earlier statements to police.

Sentencing still to come

Gosal has remained in custody since his arrest and will be sentenced at a later date. He is due back in court later this month to set a sentencing date.

The distinction between the two charges carries significant legal weight. A second-degree murder conviction in Canada carries an automatic life sentence with no possibility of parole for at least 10 years. Manslaughter, by contrast, carries no mandatory minimum sentence except in cases involving firearms.

Political reaction

The verdict drew criticism from Bryan Tepper, the B.C. Conservative opposition critic for the solicitor general. "It's ludicrous that a judge could find that someone who violently stabbed a father outside a coffee shop didn't understand that death could follow," Tepper said.

Tepper framed the case in broader terms: "This is about more than one terrible incident. British Columbians are watching public disorder become normalized while violent crime continues to threaten ordinary families. People should not have to wonder whether asking someone to follow the rules could put their lives at risk."

The Sunday evening attack, which occurred at around 5:30 p.m., was recorded by onlookers on cellphones. Multiple videos were posted online that day, despite appeals from Schmidt's family and police to remove the graphic footage.

Source: Vancouver Sun Crime