Lisa Marie McNeil, 20, Halifax NS
In early morning hours of May 23, 2000, Lisa McNeil’s unconscious body lay next to a broken window as a neighbor tried to get her to safety during a house fire.
Lisa later died in hospital from smoke inhalation.
Lisa was described by neighbors as ‘a good-hearted woman with a pack of problems.’
The Accused was on a court order to stay away from Lisa’s address. The day of Lisa’s murder, he tried to reconcile with her. Lisa refused, but the Accused, who lived in the same rooming house, continued to knock on her door, telling her he loved her.
Around 8:30 pm the evening before Lisa’s death, another tenant told the Accused to stop bothering Lisa. When the Accused continued to contact Lisa, the other tenant invited Lisa to stay overnight at his place.
At 11:00 the same evening, another friend joined Lisa and the tenant. The Accused began knocking on the tenant’s door, accusing Lisa of sleeping with the two men.
In the Accused’s statement to police, he indicated he was angry when he entered a second-floor apartment, sometime between 6:00am and 7:00 am, placing a lit cigarette on the bed and covering it with a blanket.
A short time later, the Accused returned to the apartment building, but panicked when a woman advised him the building was on fire.
A tenant attempted to coax Lisa out of her apartment, but she stayed behind, possibly to save a cat.
Lisa’s ex-boyfriend was charged with second-degree murder and arson. He subsequently pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to five and a half years in prison.