Canadian True Crime - The Murder of Paula Gallant

Episode Date: July 15, 2017

Two days after Christmas in 2005, 36-year-old schoolteacher Paula Gallant went shopping and never returned. Just hours after she was reported missing by her husband Jason MacRae, her body was found in the trunk of her car. How did she die? And who would have cause to harm someone so beloved by her wide network of family, friends and the local community? This is a heartbreaking tale of two sisters who wouldn’t give up, and a family bond that can’t be broken—no matter what.Look out for early, ad-free release on CTC premium feeds: available on Amazon Music (included with Prime), Apple Podcasts, Patreon and Supercast. Full list of resources, information sources, credits and music credits:See the page for this episode at www.canadiantruecrime.ca/episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Christy and welcome to Canadian true crime, episode 10, Paula Gallant. This podcast contains coarse language, adult themes and content of a violent and disturbing nature. Listener discretion is advised. This is a true crime story, but it's also the story of three sisters and the unique bond that they shared. The Galant family consisted of older sisters, Lana and Lynn, and 36-year-old Paula Galant, who was a bit younger and affectionately referred to as the baby of the family. The sisters had lost both their parents to illness over 15 years before this story begins, but had successfully forged ahead in life by ensuring they remained connected

as the last remaining members of the family. Lana and Lynn became surrogate parents to Paula, and now all three of them were married and were godparents to each other's children. Paula and her husband Jason had been married for two and a hundred, half years and had an 11-month-old little girl called Anna. The bonds of love between these three surviving sisters were strong. Friends called them three peas in a pod. The year was 2005, and it was the day after Boxing Day in a community west of Halifax, Nova

Scotia. Nova Scotia is one of three maritime provinces on the east coast of Canada and is the second smallest province in the country. On December 27th, after spending Christmas and Boxing Day together as a family, older sister Lana had checked in with her younger sister Paula at about 1.30 in the afternoon. They had a benign conversation with Paula saying in passing that she planned to be home for the rest of the day. At about 7.30 p.m. that night, Lana received a phone call from Jason McCray, Paula's husband and father of their baby daughter. Jason said Paula had gone out shopping at 2pm and had not returned. He wanted to know if Lana knew where she was. Lana immediately started to worry.

She went to her other sister Lynn's house to check there and regroup. Meanwhile, Jason called the Halifax Regional Police to seek advice and then together with Lana and Lynn began phoning Paula's friends. They checked her bank and credit cards online to see if they'd been used. Finally, Jason decided to get in his car, saying he was driving to the Costco store where Paula had gone to purchase diapers to see if he could find her or her car there. Jason didn't locate anything, so just after 10pm he called 911 and reported his wife as a missing person. The RCMP, or Mounties, sprung into action. In the meantime, Lynn stayed with baby Anna, while Lana and her husband Paul, Lynn's husband Ellen, and a friend, went to the Beachville Lakeside Timberley School, where Paula

was a grade three teacher. It was close, actually within walking distance of Paula and Jason's house. As they arrived at the school car park just after midnight, they saw her car, a green 1997 Chevrolet Cavalier. Straight away they called the RCMP and Paula's husband Jason, who came to the school immediately. As they waited for the RCMP to show up, Jason ran around the school banging on the doors as if he thought Paula might have been in the building.

The RCMP showed up with a spare set of keys for the car and they opened the trunk. No one was prepared for what they saw. It was the body of Paula Gaplea. Galant, laying in the fetal position under a grey blanket. She was wearing jeans and a black nylon jacket, not at all appropriate clothing for that freezing cold winter's day, and not what she'd been dressed in when she was seen out earlier in the day. Her shoes were lying near her head. Her car had not been left running. It wasn't immediately evident how Paula had died, so her body

was sent in for an autopsy. Her husband, Jason, was formally interviewed by police the next day, He said he had no idea what had happened to Paula, and said that she'd left their house to go shopping at 2pm, the last time he saw her. In the meantime, as news spread of Paula's disappearance and death, the shocked community couldn't help but speculate on what might have happened to Paula. How and why did she die? And how did she end up in the car?

The media, of course, tried to find out answers of their own. RCMP don't believe a weapon was used and say there was no sign of a struggle. They're not calling it a murder, but aren't rolling it out either. We're not able to confirm it as a homicide, nor are we ruling out anything. So it's a suspicious death. However, we investigate all suspicious deaths, as though they were homicides until we learn other. While they waited for answers, the community reflected on their loss. Paula was one of those people who was beloved by everyone. She was a devoted mother to 11-month-old Anna, the light of her life, and a loving wife to Jason.

As a schoolteacher, she was well-liked and respected by students, parents and teachers alike. She'd been teaching at Beachville Lakeside-Timbly Elementary School for five years and was described as having exceptional communication skills and the desire to pass on knowledge and make a difference in the lives of the student she taught. Her teacher colleagues described her as valuing, sharing, fellowship and professionalism. But Paula was far more than this. She was a talented artist who explored a variety of mediums. For a number of years, she'd been drawn to the idea of the four elements,

Earth, air, water, fire, and had put together a multimedia art piece that incorporated visual art as well as audio, which was shown at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design the year before she died. Paula's personality in itself was a work of art. Her friends described her as a natural ham, who would do anything for a laugh. She had a warm, infectious personality with a sharp sense of humour

and people tended to gravitate towards her. She liked wine, walking the dog and baking. Her friends described her as a loyal friend. She was the first person they'd go to with good news because of the way she shared excitement and she'd also be the first person they'd go to with bad news because she always knew the right things to say.

As we know, Paula was part of a trio of very close sisters. The Galant family, parents Paul and Diane, and their daughters Lynn and Lana, were originally from Ontario, but in 1967 they moved to beautiful Cape Breton, one of the islands that make up the province of Nova Scotia. Just two years later, baby Paula came along, born in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, on December 5, Her sisters described her entry to the world as their family's dream come true. The Gallant household was a loving and happy one that stressed the importance of love, compassion, sharing, respect and a sense of family.

However, in 1985 when Paula was 16, their father, Paul, died suddenly of a brain aneurysm. The remaining family, Diane and the three girls, continued on, trying as best they could to deal with the gaping hole they'd been left with. Just four years later, they were dealt another blow when their mother Diane also died unexpectedly of an aneurysm. Paula was 19. The three sisters knew that now more than ever, they needed to stick together and live what they'd been taught about the bonds of family.

Friends and family members rallied around the sisters providing support, generosity, love and friendship when they needed it the most. The sisters made it through each day, with their bond becoming stronger. Time passed on, and Paula moved to Teachers College in Truro, Nova Scotia, about an hour's drive north of Halifax.

Lynn and Lana supported Paula in her educational journey, and also ensured her emotional needs were met during this time by helping her transition from life with them to independence, all the while making sure each life milestone was celebrated as their parents would have wanted. Eventually, they all ended up living within 15 minutes of each other in West Halifax. They continued to spend a lot of time together and saw each other constantly. They celebrated birthdays and holidays together.

They took summer vacations in Prince Edward Island and supported each other's families through sporting tournaments, school concerts, and other life events. Lana and Lynn said that although some found their relationship to be unnaturally close, They were proud of the unique relationship they'd forged as sisters, given their tragic family history. But now they had been dealt yet another blow. Paula's sister Lynn would later write of how she and Lana felt at the time of Paula's murder. Quote,

Shock, disbelief, numbness, isolation, indescribable pain, confusion, fear, and inability to function. You keep hoping that you're going to wake up and it will be the same as, it was before the nightmare. Then you look into your children's eyes, into the eyes of those who have filled your home, and you know it's real. Sobs fill the silence. You pray that darkness will not fall. You don't want your friends to ever leave your kitchen because then you know you will be left alone to feel. It's like your body is consumed with concrete and you cannot move. You barely breathe. You know it is worse than you ever thought possible. And without even knowing what happened to their sister, they needed to give her a funeral and say goodbye. Paula Galant's funeral was held Monday,

January 2nd, 2006. Hundreds of friends, family, and the wider community packed into the Lakeside Church to farewell Paula and pay their respects. The funeral and wake was planned by Paula's sisters Lynn and Lana, her husband, Jason McCray, declined involvement. A family friend, Andre McLean, described Paula as, quote, A beautiful, caring person, a diamond, who extended light to all who knew her. It was announced that well-wishes could donate to a trust fund for the couple's daughter, Anna.

After the funeral, hundreds of friends and supporters paused to watch as Paula's husband, Jason McCray hugged family members. But Paula's sisters noticed he displayed a lack of emotion, given the circumstances and what they knew of him. They also observed his reluctance to stand near Paula's coffin. It's well known that everyone reacts differently to tragedy, so perhaps their observations were chalked down to this.

Lana and Lynn paid for the funeral themselves, $5,000 and also arranged and paid for the headstone marker to go on Paula's grave. Paula's husband, Jason, didn't contribute with either input or financial contribution. With Paula laid to rest, the police could get back to the task at hand, find out what happened and who was responsible. The family and the community at large waited patiently for answers. On January the 10th, 2006, two weeks after Paula was discovered, the autopsy results came in and the police issued a statement to the hungry media.

Police say a young schoolteacher whose body was found in the treacher. trunk of her car three days after Christmas was definitely murdered. For two weeks, they've puzzled over how Paula Galant died. Her car was found by her family who went looking for her when she failed to return from a shopping trip. Today, police confirmed they are treating her death as a homicide. Global's Jacqueline Foster reports. Paula Galant's death raised suspicions from the moment she was found in the trunk of her car, but colleagues at the school where she taught grade three are stunned by today's confirmation that she was murdered. At least we know what we're dealing with here, but it's shocking news today.

Investigators aren't saying how Glant died, but they do say they believe it's an isolated case. For that reason, RCMP don't think it's necessary to caution the community. All I can say is the medical examiner went through and did his autopsy, passed those results on to us, and we took those results, and with his results, we deemed it to be a homicide. Galant's car was seized and evidence taken from it, but RCMP won't say what that was. Right now they're trying to piece together the day Galant went missing. They want to hear from anyone who may have seen her and where. In these type of cases, the spouse is usually the first person that needs to be cleared.

So Jason McCrae was, of course, under the microscope. Through their investigations, police found that there were no serious indications of previous domestic violence or serious issues in the marriage. Friends and family said the two had a loving and trusting marriage, with no signs of physical abuse. At the time, Paula and Jason were even preparing to buy a new house that had made an offer and it had been accepted. However, investigations did bring up one thing.

There was an issue of a $700 online gambling debt that was causing some friction in the marriage. Police conducted formal interviews with Jason, three more times in January and once more in February. In each interview, he continued to insist that he had no knowledge of what happened to Paula, and that the last time he'd seen her was when she had left at 2pm to go shopping. He denied any link between the gambling debt and Paula's murder, initially saying that the debt actually belonged to his brother and that Paula knew this.

But after more questioning, he admitted that he'd lied to Paula. The debt was his, and Paula had died without knowing the truth. He said that he'd been planning on telling her, but he didn't want to bring it up over the Christmas holidays. So he planned to tell her in the new year. He admitted she wouldn't have been very happy about it, but they still would have worked it out.

Police did formally arrest Jason at one of the interviews they conducted, but they did not lay charges. So Jason continued to live in the house he shared with Paula, along with his daughter Anna and his parents. The mortgage on the house was paid out by insurance. As well as working his full-time job at the call centre at Nova Scotia Power, Jason collected various survivor benefits on behalf of himself and Anna, as well as a one-time death benefit of $2,500.

He submitted a claim on Paula's life insurance policy of $100,000, but the insurer denied it. Despite the money he did receive, and the fact that he now owned his house outright, he did not offer to contribute to Paula's funeral costs, either at the time or at any point onwards. Meanwhile, police worked hard to piece together the final days of Paula Galant's life. She, Jason, and their daughter, Anna, spent Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and part of Boxing Day at her sister Lana's family home, along with her other sister Lynn and her family.

On Boxing Day, Paula, Jason and Anna returned to their home. That night, the couple were intimate. On December the 27th, the day Paula went missing, she visited Lana in the morning, then went to a hardware store to buy paint to use in preparation for listing their house for sale. She got some chili out of the freezer to defrost for dinner that evening. Basically, nothing out of the ordinary had happened that day.

Three days after it was a night, announced that Paula's death was a homicide, police released two new pictures of her to the media. They hoped it would trigger someone's memory, and they would come forward to help piece together what had happened before Paula had died. We're trying to see if anybody was in around the BTL school area any time in between 1.30 and 630, if they have been there, if they could phone investigators, because now we're trying to actually put a time down at what time the car came there. Friends and co-workers are still in shock.

More than anything, what people are feeling is grief. It's really just that. Paula was a very, very important person in our lives in this community. And so that's mostly what people are experiencing. More than 100 parents attended a meeting last night to talk about their concerns on how to help their children get through this trying time. The meeting was an opportunity for the community to come together and share their grief. He says no one is focusing on the investigation.

The consensus of our discussions last night is that that, That shouldn't be our focus here in the community. The investigation has to continue. The police will do their job. Our job really is just to deal with our families and our teachers and our school and get back to normal routines. RCMP wouldn't discuss suspects. They would only say it was not a random act of violence.

As more and more time went on with no answers, Paula's sisters Lana and Lynn worked hard to keep Paula's name from fading away, along with any possible answers to the question around what had happened to her. April 5, 2006, marked 100 days since Paula had died. On that day, Lana and Lynn, along with their families, Paula's friends and colleagues, and the wider community met at the cemetery where Paula was buried. Together, they set 100 prayers, lit 100 candles, and released 100 colorful balloons as a symbol of hope that one day they would see justice

for Paula's death. One notable absence was Paula's husband, Jason McCray. Not long after that, Paula's sister, Lynn Gallant Blackbird, spoke to the media about where the case was at. She said that since no charges had been laid, the family feared the police case was stalled and the public would move on. She said, quote, It's still very surreal and very unimaginable.

A part of me has died forever. Lynn went on to say that she and her sisters always saw themselves as strong survivors, but now they were just two Galant sisters, numb with grief. Quote, I don't know what we are anymore. I wake up every day with one purpose to be Paula's voice and see this to the end. I want people to remember her for the life that she had, not for the fact that she was found in the trunk of a car, dead.

The sisters had initiated an active letter-writing. campaign to local newspapers in an effort to keep Paula's name in the public conscious and hopefully trigger memories. The letters resulted in follow-up news articles being written and other pieces like letters to the editor. Lynn said she was confident there would be an ending to the story. By this time, the community was really starting to question where Paula's husband Jason McCray was in all of this. Why was he not standing with Paula's sisters? Why was he not in the news pleading with the public for information and assistance. Why had he not attended the 100-day ceremony?

The lack of answers and information from police was frustrating for Paula's family and the community at large. In September, eight months after Paula's death, the RCMP staged a town hall. How affects RCMP were at this church hall in Timberley to answer community concerns. They hold town meetings like this in Timberley every year, But this year, the community has had to deal with murder, the unsolved murder of Paula Galant.

Everybody wants it solved. Everybody wants there to be a resolution to the case. But we understand that it takes time, and there's a lot of, I mean, the police are doing the best job that they can. The frustration comes in the fact that it's been nine months and it's still an open murder investigation. Even if they could tell us how many officers were on the case or how much money they were putting into it or something about the reward program or the forensic evidence are waiting for. You know, I think there's so many questions that have remained unanswered for a long period of time. But police refused to comment on the case.

Actually, the Polyglant case is an ongoing investigation. It's still very active, and as such it's not appropriate. It wouldn't be appropriate for me to discuss it in a public forum, nor would it be for any ongoing investigation. There were a lot of unhappy and frustrated people who left that town hall. At the same time, it was announced that the Department of Justice was offering up to $50,000 for information leading to a conviction in five high-profile unsolved cases in Nova Scotia.

Paula Galant's case was one of them. Up until this point, Paula's sisters Lynn and Lana had only spoken to the media about Paula's murder via written statements and letters. But now they chose to speak publicly. Here's Lynn. This week marks the 10th month of my sister Paula's horrific murder. Lynn Blackburn is hoping a new cash reward program will entice someone to help solve her sister's murder.

There's not a day that goes by that I don't wake up. First of all, wanting her back in my life, but secondly, wanting the people responsible for this to be held accountable to this very horrific crime. and Lana also lobbied politicians, and they had a win on November the 16th, 2006, about 11 months after Paula's death. Local representative for the writing of Timberley Prospect,

Bill Estherbrook's MLA, had been active in helping grow awareness for Paula's murder, and finally moved for the adoption of a Parliament resolution that meant that Paula's school would formally dedicate an art room in memory of her. It would be forever called Paula's Place. The room was selected at the school and had been renovated by her family and friends to become a creative space that Paula would have loved.

It was filled with Paula's art and the artwork of students and it was based on an idea that Paula herself had years before when she mentioned changing an old industrial arts room into a special place for creating art. Paula's place was officially opened on December 6, 2006, the day after what would have been her third.

37th birthday. It was also the National Day of Remembrance and Action for Violence Against Women, which was originally chosen to mark the anniversary of the Montreal Massacre, the 1989 mass shooting murders of 14 young women at an engineering school in Montreal. Mark Lepin, the shooter, deliberately targeted women, citing that he hated feminism. The opening of Paula's place was attended by over 200 people, including the media, who televised parts of the opening. Sister Lana Kenny said, quote, she saw the beauty in everything,

and as tired and uninspiring as this room was prior to her death, she would have continued to allow the children to come in here and be inspired in the same manner. Again, a notable absence from this event was Paula's husband, Jason McCray. A year after Paula's murder, Lynn and Lana's personal campaigns paid off with some more coverage. Sisters Speak Out was how it was framed. First to speak is Lynn and then Lana.

The three Galant sisters were extremely close. Then Lynn and Lana got the news that rocked their world. It's almost as if the world stopped on the 27th of December, and it's never been properly placed back on its axis. Gallant, the youngest of the sisters, was a grade three teacher at an elementary school just outside Halifax. She was 36, the mother of a little girl. The person or people responsible to this, I have to believe, are going to start having a conscience at some point and realize that this is our lives. This is what we're living every day, every minute.

We do not stop and not think of Paula. The sisters say they've been helped by the support of hundreds of people. We've been very blessed. with our life to be enriched by so many wonderful strangers that Paula had touched their lives and they didn't go away. They came into ours. But the family would have liked more support from the RCMP. Their supporters were disappointed with the response

when they asked for news of the investigation during a public meeting with RCMP. There have been many opportunities for us as sisters to stand in partnership with the... the RCMP and plead for the public support. We've never been granted that. The RCMP said that the current focus of the investigation was piecing together how Paula's car got to the school unnoticed. They said there was only one entrance to the school and whoever drove her car left the lot in one of two ways, either via foot on one of the pathways around the school or they'd left in a vehicle

they'd parked in the school previously. The police said they believed the murder was not a random act. Although Paula's husband Jason said that she had planned to go shopping that day, investigators were unable to uncover any solid evidence to suggest that Paula was ever in a store that afternoon or evening. They did speak to one person who was at school until 4pm that day and didn't see Paula's car. And a couple of other people saw the car parked there later. With this information, the police put together a time frame of when Paula's car arrived, between 4 and 6.30 p.m. Meanwhile, on the one-year anniversary of Paula's death, Lynn and Lana personally canvassed Paula's old neighborhood,

talking to neighbors to see if they could shake any new memories of that time exactly one year beforehand, two days after Christmas. Their efforts paid off. On January 5, 2007, Lynn and Lana awoke to read in the paper that the police had received two new tips that were being followed up by investigators. This gave them a renewed energy that the efforts they'd put into keeping Paula fresh in the community's memory was paying off. They said that even if the tips went nowhere, they would not give up. Unfortunately, six months went by with no new information. So, on June 27, 2007, the sisters scheduled a memorial walk to mark 18 months since Paula's murder, followed by a prayer service.

The overall goal of the walk was, of course, to spark more memories and encourage people to come forward with more information. Jason McCray did not attend. By this time, Crime Stoppers had released a short video requesting people to come forward. The crime stoppers need your help in solving one of the most difficult cases in recent memory. The murder of Nova Scotia school teacher Paula Galand. The married 36-year-old mother of one was last seen on December 27, 2005, when she spent the afternoon shopping in the Halifax area. Her body was found the next day in the parking where had a peaceful lakeside-timary school

in the truck of a green 1997 Chevrolet Cavalier. There was no sign of a struggle, but police were quick to determine they are investigating a murder. The medical examiner went through and did his autopsy, passed those results. onto us and with his results we deemed it to be on homicide. The investigators believe someone out there knows or saw something that could bring the person responsible to justice. In August of 2007, a blog post suddenly appeared by a local mummy blogger. It was called Not So Merry after all.

The blogger said she felt saddened by Paula's death and expressed disbelief and frustration that two years later, her killer was still roaming free. The post itself wasn't provocative or controversial, but as it turned out, the comment section of this post ended up becoming the place where the community came to give their opinions on what had happened, or just read. Jason was a prime topic of conversation, with most people accusing him of strange behavior and several of being directly involved in Paula's death. A few friends chimed in to support him, and a few others said they used to be friends but women. weren't anymore. Obviously, this is essentially all hearsay as many of the comments were anonymous and unable to be substantiated. But as time went on, the comments on this blog post continued to grow in both volume and intensity. In October of 2007, almost two years after

Paula's murder, the street that Paula's sister Lana lived on needed to be renamed. There was a similar named street in the neighbourhood and the local government wanted to avoid further confusion. So a neighbour, Dracina Hilia, petition the neighbours with a recommendation that the street be named in memory of Paula. It was approved and the street was named Paula Drive. So Paula's little girl, Anna, then almost two years old, would know that there was yet another permanent memorial to her mother, a street called Paula Drive that her auntie Lana actually lived on. The sisters continued to spread awareness, using what they called Paula's signature letter P, which is the way in which she wrote the P in her name, in a sort of flowing style with ornamental loops.

Her sisters had necklaces made with a letter featured as a pendant, and it was also a strong theme on any materials they produced in the effort to keep Paula's name fresh in the public domain. To commemorate the two-year anniversary of Paula's death, in 2007 her family announced a new website they'd been diligently working on. www.pola gallant.ca. The website was launched at an event called All Things Paula, on December the 5th, which would have been Paula's 38th birthday. Again, it was tied to the National Day of Remembrance and Action

on Violence Against Women in Canada. Paula's friends and family produced magnetic versions of Paula's signature letter P, which they encouraged people to display on their cars. The website was unveiled, which again had Paula's letter P as a main graphic feature. The website was organized into several main sections, all starting with that P. Paula, peace, and perseverance. As well as the website launch, the crowds gathered at her school to hear from the RCMP, crime stoppers, Mr Bill Estherbrook's MLA, the local politician who championed the Paula's Place

Art Room, and a number of friends who read poems and toasted to Paula. Again, Paula's husband Jason McCrae was noticeably absent, saying he was unable to make it. A sad undertone to the celebrations was the fact that almost two years had passed without finding out what had happened to Paula. But the sisters would continue with that. their crusade. On the exact day of the two-year anniversary of Paula's death, her husband, Jason McCray, gave his first ever interview to the media, going against the advice of his lawyer. He chose the Chronicle Herald newspaper, the main daily newspaper published in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The 34-year-old

was dressed in jeans, a striped shirt, and baseball cap, and was described as being a soft speaker. He said that, quote, Paula was my best friend. She was my life and she was taken away from me. I'd never do anything to hurt her. He said he met Paula in January 2001 at a housewarming party. Mutual friends thought they should meet, so set it up to be at that specific party. He said he and Paula hit it off right from the start, saying they had fun and everything they did. The couple married just over two and a half years later in July 2003. When speaking about the night Paula went missing, Jason said she left to go and get diapers for Anna. In the meantime, he said he took Anna

with him to run some errands, came home late in the afternoon and Paula still wasn't there. He did say that he'd later found out she'd been spending some free time at the school, working on a sketch of Anna, which she was going to give her daughter as a first birthday present. Jason said he didn't know if that was where she actually went, but that's where her car was found. About the moment Paula was found in the trunk of her car, Jason said he was at the school but not near the car when the trunk was opened. He said it was something that he never in a million years thought he would have to go through

and that words can't even describe what it's like. Jason didn't want to talk about how he was arrested two months after Paula's death and then released without charges. But he did speak on his feelings about the job police were doing. He said he was happy with some parts and discouraged with some parts. He said he thought they overlooked a lot of things. He went on to say he appreciated the efforts Lynn and Lana had been putting in to Paula's awareness campaign. Quote, it's fantastic what they're doing.

Everything they're doing can only help. He said the reason he didn't go to the launch of Paula's website, the day she would have turned 38, was that he had held his own gathering of his friends and family that night. He said they walked on Paula's favorite trail, prayed, and put up some posters and flowers. He said it was a private moment he had with his daughter

on his wife's birthday. He did say that his once positive relationship with Paula's sisters was now strained, with much of that centering on Anna's custody. He said in March 2006, three months after Paula's death, Lana and Lynn applied for full custody of Anna, requesting no access for Jason. He said their grounds were that he was an unfit father. Quote, I can certainly understand Paula's sisters wanting to spend time with their niece.

Unfortunately, they just went about it the wrong way. Instead of them trying to remain a part of her life, they tried to take me out of Anna's life. Try to imagine for a moment that your life has been turned upside down. All you have left is your life. daughter and someone tries to take her away from you. As of March 2007, Jason said he hadn't allowed Anna to see her mother's sisters. He said he decided to keep Anna with him at all times or with his parents who had moved into his home. He said he hoped to someday rebuild his relationship with Paula's family

so Anna can be with her other relatives. He spoke about Anna as any father would, saying she was fantastic, fantastic, his savior, and she keeps him busy. He went on to say that she looked so much like Paula. The reporter brought up the blog on which anonymous commenters had pointed to Jason as Paula's killer, but he said he hadn't read it. He said he didn't know what had been said, but that no one had actually ever said to him directly that they thought he was involved, although he did acknowledge that in these cases people usually look at the husbands. He said he has no idea what happened to his wife.

Quote, it doesn't make any sense to me how no one could have seen anything. How does something like this happen? Did she come across something that she wasn't supposed to see? It's senseless. Finally, when asked how he was faring,

Jason said he didn't think his life would ever return to normal. Quote, my life has been completely torn upside down and taken away from me. I just try to get through day by day spending my time with Anna. She's my constant reminder of Paula.

She looks like her. She acts like her. That same day, two years after his wife was murdered, Jason McCray issued his first public plea for people to come forward to police or crime stoppers with any information they might have remembered. Meanwhile, Lynn and Lana, of course, continued their crusade, honoring Paula at every opportunity they saw. Early in 2008, they saw the $50,000 reward for,

information on the unsolved cases of Paula and four others in Nova Scotia was about to expire, so they lobbied the Department of Justice to have it increased and to put an end to expiry dates in the program. She said they found it emotionally difficult to wait and see if Paula's case qualified for the program year after year. As yet, none of the reward money had been given out. Later that year, Lynn and Lana were relieved when their efforts had paid off. The reward was extended and tripled to $150,000. Lynn spoke to the media, saying, quote, I don't think 50,000 is enough to entice somebody to come forward with information.

When you have to involve yourself in a murder, and you have to be part of a trial and be subject to that, I think when people weigh that decision they'd rather not get involved. She went on to say that if the increased reward money leads to a conviction in any murder, not just her sisters, she'd feel a great victory. Unfortunately, though, another year went by with no new information. Although by now Paula's death was one of the most high-profile unsolved homicides in Nova Scotia, Jason McCray contacted the National Investigative Journalism TV program,

the Fifth the State, to say that, quote, maybe something done nationally might create more awareness and actually bring something to light. He also appeared on the National, the flagship national television news program of CBC News. On December 5, 2008, Lana and Lynn organized a gathering at the school gymnasium to celebrate what would have been Paula's 39th birthday. This was a big event, with several important announcements and attended by many important guests. Attendees placed purple ribbons over their hearts, displayed Paula's purple letter peas, and photos of Paula's life were on display alongside the new $150,000 reward poster. Lana and Lynn donated $1,500 to one of the school's associations,

which would be used to purchase a history panel and memorial plaque. The RCMP were there to confirm that Paula's case was still an active file and that they were still committed to solving it. Several high-profile politicians were there, and a message was sent from the Premier of No. over Scotia who was unable to make it. MLA Bill Esther Brooks presented Lana and Lynn with the 250 democracy award for their efforts

in seeking justice for Paula in their work with victim services and in creating awareness of violence against women. Mr. Estherbrook said Lana and Lynn played key roles and improvements in the province's Victim Services Program and also praised their efforts on having the reward money extended and tripled. Louise Christie, a long-time friend of the family, presented a book she'd written in loving memory of Paula,

and dedicated to Paula's daughter Anna, then almost four years old. The event concluded with a birthday cake and what was named A Walk to Remember on the trails around the school, with a candlelight vigil. Again, Jason McCrae did not attend this event. In June 2009, the book that was written in memory of Paula was officially, published and launched for sale. Proceeds of the book titled Miss Galant's favourite season by Louise Christie and illustrated by Joan Power would go to local organisations trying to eradicate violence against women. The Nova Scotia Department of Education approved the book for distribution to all elementary schools in

Nova Scotia with two copies being purchased for each school library. The book sold out quickly and new copies had to be ordered. What nobody knew at the time, including the public, the media, or Paula's family, was that Jason McCray had continued to be the police's primary suspect in Paula's murder. However, despite their own investigation combined with the increased awareness from her family, friends and community, they just couldn't get any concrete proof to tie him to the murder. So they decided to employ the Mr. Big technique, sometimes called the Canadian technique, because it was developed by the RCMP in British Columbia in the 1990s. The technique is used when

police lack sufficient evidence to charge a suspect and all their other investigation methods have failed. You've likely heard of this technique, but if you haven't, it basically goes like this. A team of undercover officers pose as a crime. boss and gang members. They stage situations where the suspect is drawn into the gang. Over time, the target is given friendship and camaraderie, money and a sense of belonging in exchange for participating in the illegal operations of the gang, which are of course all staged. They go to great lengths to play the part, even orchestrating staged kidnappings, violent assaults or fake murders. Eventually, the target is put in a situation where they're forced to demonstrate their loyalty

by confessing to their crimes, often being told by an elusive crime boss, also known as the Mr Big character, that they've heard something from a source within the police and need total honesty for the relationship to continue. By this point, the target is so far entrenched into the gang's manufactured culture that they often willingly confess to the crime. The Mr Big technique is controversial. It's a long game that can take months to pay off and is expensive. There are concerns that it encourages wrongful confessions. However, in 2008, the RCMP claimed that in 75% of cases,

the target was either cleared or charged, and when the case was prosecuted, an estimated 95% resulted in a conviction. So short of a miracle, this was the only trick the RCMP had up their sleeves to try and elicit a confession out of their primary suspect. In October 2009, the operation began. A situation was staged where Jason McRae was introduced to an undercover RCMP officer, who, over time, befriended him and offered him work with a crime syndicate. This is when the undercover operation really began. with a number of situations being staged to gain Jason's trust and loyalty.

It worked. Seven months later, in April 2010, Jason McCrae voluntarily quit his full-time job in the call center of Nova Scotia Power to work full-time for the staged crime syndicate. In August 2010, 10 months after the operation began, Jason met with an undercover operator who told him he was the head of the crime syndicates. The Mr. Big character. They met in a Newfoundland hotel room.

Mr. Big said that he had learned the police had something on Jason, but the gang had connections and could possibly make his problem go away. But in order to understand the situation and what needed to be done, Jason needed to tell him everything that had happened with Paula. It's known that this hotel conversation was recorded via both audio and video, but these were not released to the public. In fact, most details remain shrouded in mystery.

But here's what we know about what happened. Jason confessed. He told the undercover officer that, yes, he did kill his wife Paula Gallant on December the 27th, 2005. Remember Paula's sister Lana spoke with Paula at 1.30? And Jason told the police he'd left to go shopping at 2pm? Well, here's what he said really happened between 2 and 2.30. p.m. Jason McCray said that he and Paula were in the basement and their 11-month-old daughter, Anna,

was having a nap in her crib upstairs. Paula and Jason had been arguing about a debt on his credit card that he'd lied about. Paula was sitting at a computer desk in the basement, working on the computer as they were arguing. Jason went upstairs and returned with a piece of two-by-four wood. Paula had her back to him as he crept up to her and swung the piece of wood at her head, hitting the wall before striking her on the head. Paula didn't even see it coming. She didn't go down after being struck, but turned and stood up, faced him and screamed.

He then grabbed her by the front and pushed her back into the laundry room area. While she was lying on the floor, she said, What are you doing? Stop! Jason described. how he wrapped both hands tightly around her neck for a couple of minutes. He could hear on the baby monitor that baby Anna was waking from her nap as he squeezed his hands around the neck and throat of her mother as hard as he could. Jason said Paula had made some gurgling noises after,

and he wanted to make sure he'd finished the job. So, he went upstairs, got some plastic wrap and wrapped Paula's head with it three or four times to make sure she couldn't breathe. He covered her body with a sheet and left her in the laundry room for about 20 minutes while he got Anna up from her nap and fed her in her high chair. When he'd finished feeding Anna, he left her in her high chair again while he went outside to see if anyone was around, possible witnesses. He couldn't see anyone, so he returned to the basement and pulled the sheet off Paula.

He set her up and put a black wind-breaker jacket on her plus a pair of loafers. type shoes. He said he wrapped Paula in the sheet and slid her body out a window next to the driveway. He then lifted her into the trunk of her car in the fetal position, facing away from him. In the process, her shoes fell off, so he picked them up and put them in the trunk next to her. He got out the emergency kit in the trunk of the car and retrieved a gray blanket from it, which he used to cover her in the trunk. All this time, his baby daughter, to Anna was still in her high chair. Jason left her alone in the house and drove Paula's car over to the school and parked it there, leaving the keys in the console between the driver and passenger seats.

He then ran the short distance home to get back to Anna in the high chair. He crossed a soccer field and used a back path that took him to a nearby street to his house. Once he got to his street, he started walking. He stopped at his community mailbox on the street, saying that a anyone saw him outside he could say he was getting the mail. He retrieved Anna and they went for a drive to the area of a Halifax shopping centre and got rid of the two by four and plastic wrap by throwing them in a dumpster. He then went to the bank and deposited a hundred dollars into his account and then went to another store to buy batteries. These were the errands he told the police he was running that afternoon. He said that the next day as other people were over at the house,

He found Paula's earring in the laundry room. These people saw this earring as he picked it up. He took the earring upstairs and three days later disposed of it in a garbage can at a Tim Hortons. After this conversation, the undercover operatives persuaded Jason to reenact the crime in his house, obviously to assist them in understanding how the Mr. Big character could help get the heat off him.

He showed one undercover cop the damage to the wall that he hit with the person. piece of wood just before hitting Paula on the back of her head. The cop sat in the computer chair that Paula had sat in and noted the damage to the wall was about the same height as his head. Jason said he patched the wall later the same day and showed the cop the patching job. He then reenacted Paula's strangling death on one of the operators, pushing him back into the laundry room and onto the floor. He also demonstrated on another of the operatives exactly how he put Paula's body into the trunk of the car. During the reenactment, Jason was being questioned by the undercover operatives about whether

he'd planned the murder. Some parts of this transcript were later made public. Here are a couple of conversations between Jason and one of the operatives. Please note, I have edited them slightly for flow purposes, but it was evident from the transcript that Jason was not remorseful when discussing what happened, and in several parts, he laughed briefly. At what point did you know you were gonna fucking whack her? Honestly, I thought about it before. I didn't think I'd ever do it. Then, yeah, I pretty much knew I was going to do it when I did it. How long before that, did you have last thoughts that you were going to whack her?

The last time I thought about it? Yeah. Oh, it was, yeah, a couple days before that, probably. The operative then went on to ask if Jason always thought he would kill her the way he did. Jason replied that he'd thought about how he would do it. He said he had a couple of ideas. One of them was waking up in the morning one day and grabbing her in bed. The operative asked him if he was planning to hit her, choke her or shoot her.

Jason said his idea was to choke her. In this next conversation, Jason picked up a picture of him and Paula, describing how he felt when he looked at it. Like, we were really happy at one time. She's just, she was like, it's nothing. It could be about fucking forgetting something downstairs when I finished with it. She'd be on my case. A lot of women are that way, though, anyway.

But when you were thinking about it, I mean, did you know that this is not going to last? One day she's fucking dead, or? I had, honestly, yeah, I think I did. Like, when did you think you were going to? to do it for if you knew you were going to whack her? I think, like I said, I was probably a couple weeks, maybe a month that I actually started having ideas of doing it. Yeah, but you knew that was going to happen?

You just didn't know when or? I pretty much decided. Yeah, it was going to happen, but I didn't know if I actually knew that I'd go through with it. Yeah. I mean, it was one day I was like, fuck yeah, I'm going to fucking do this. And then the next day, no, I can't do it. But that morning, like, okay, she bitches at you for whatever, money, money.

When you got up that morning, did you know you were going to whack her? No. No. In fact, like, when we got up that morning, she went out. She went to the hardware store to get some stuff, and she came back. And then, like I said, she wasn't in the door five minutes, and she was bitching on me about something. Like, I think something just went off. And I said, okay, today's the day.

Did you say, okay, today's the day? and then you just happened to see the wood, or you saw the wood and said, okay now, this is it. I saw the wood and said, yeah, this is it. During his meeting with the Mr. Big character in the Newfoundland Hotel Room, Jason said that his wife's murder was a big argument that had gotten out of control. He also said, quote, You realize I loved her, I really did.

The alleged crime boss asked Jason whether he and Paula had been getting along. He said that they had been, but it was petty little things that got to. to him, until she found out about the money he lost gambling, and then that caused them to argue a whole lot in the time leading up to her murder. Jason told Mr. Big that Paula found out about the gambling debt because he ended up telling her, after lying to her about it first, telling her that he'd lent the missing money to his brother. She kept quizzing him about it, and that's when he confessed. He said she was really angry about it, and it was during one of these arguments that he murdered her, Jason Wayne McCrae was arrested soon after, on August 17th, 2010, and interviewed under caution.

He didn't admit to anything, but at the same time he didn't deny his involvement in Paula's murder. The police issued a statement to the media saying they had arrested a suspect but would not identify the person until charges were laid. The community went wild. They wondered if it would be Jason. The next day, the police confirmed that it was. The press were there to take pictures as a sheriff's deputy led Jason McCray into the provincial courthouse in Halifax. He was dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved grey shirt and was handcuffed. He was arraigned in court along with his defence counsel. The charge was read and his case was adjourned for a month.

He remained in custody. Halifax Regional Police Chief Frank Beasley said, quote, The days of a short turnaround and major files are a thing of the past. Like in any file you do, you reach a point and you hit these brick walls where nothing new seems to come forward. He went on to reveal that key information was brought to the attention of investigators in the spring of 2009, although he wouldn't elaborate on what that was. Quote, new evidence which allowed us to pursue it in a different way.

Remember, the Mr. Big Sting operation, commenced just a few months later in October 2009. He went on to say Jason McCray had been a person of consideration since early on in the investigation. Quote, We always know within the first 24 to 48 hours that we have a reasonably good suspect, but knowing and proving in the investigative process are two different things. When asked why it took so long for the new evidence to lead to a charge, the police chief said, quote,

You have to do the investigation. The new information wasn't going to put somebody before the court, so we had to build an investigative approach to get the necessary information to put the person before court. The media widely reported that the tireless campaign for awareness spearheaded by Paula's sister Lynn and Lana kept public attention on the case. Ted McKinness, a friend of the Galant family,

read a statement on their behalf. quote, no words can fully express their deepest gratitude for the ongoing support they have received throughout this whole ordeal. It has been greatly appreciated and the strength, hope and prayers that have been extended since December 27, 2005 will never be forgotten. As we think of Paula today, Anna, Paula's daughter, is especially in our hearts and prayers. The family would also like to extend their prayers to the McCray family. The family realizes this is the beginning of the legal process and asks their privacy be respected. Anna, Paula's little girl, was then five years old

and had been living with her father since her mother's murder. At the time, the police would only say that they'd moved to take care of her welfare, saying they had a family liaison working through the issues and that they had no concerns about Anna's well-being. Six weeks after he was arraigned, Jason McCrae's legal team put in an application for bail, but after a private meeting with Jason's lawyer, the Crown Attorney and the Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice, the bail application was withdrawn. On March 2nd, 2011, just over five years after Paula was found in the trunk of her car,

Jason Wayne McRae pleaded guilty to her second-degree murder. The courtroom was packed with Paula's sister and other family members, and an agreed statement of facts was read out by the Crown. The statement detailed Paula's murder, the investigation, and finally the Mr. Big Sting operation that elicited the confession from Jason. Jason's lawyer said it did take some time to get the confession out of him, but finally he admitted to the murder after the Mr. Big character accused him of wasting his time. The results of Paula's autopsy were also included in this statement.

Her cause of death was determined to be asphyxiation, and the method of death, strangulation. Significant findings included marks on her neck, patikio-hemorrhaging in both her eyes and a contusion on the back of her head. There were no signs of defensive wounds. The degree of brain swelling observed was consistent with an interval of at least several minutes between a lack of oxygen supply. and death. She was only wearing one earring. Jason McCray stood in court and expressed his remorse. Quote, I have never been a violent person.

I don't know what changed in me that day. I wish it didn't happen, but it did. The Crown asked that Jason McCray be given a life sentence with no parole eligibility for 20 years. Jason's defense lawyer, Mike Taylor, suggested 12 to 17 years. The sentence, was life in prison with no eligibility for parole for 15 years. Upon sentencing, Justice Kevin Cody said,

quote, he does lack, to some degree, a conscience. Ms. Galant did nothing to bring this violence upon herself. He just decided to do it, more or less, to settle an argument. Crown prosecutor Denise Smith said she was disappointed with the sentencing decision of only 15 years until parole eligibility instead of the 20, the Crown had asked for. She explained why the prosecution settled for a second-degree murder plea

in the case instead of her first. Quote, ultimately, we felt that the evidence of planning and deliberation here was not sufficient to sustain a conviction for first-degree murder. In a victim impact statement,

Lynn Gallant Blackbird spoke of the pain her family has suffered and the betrayal they felt after tending to Jason McCray's emotional needs in the aftermath of Paula's death. She said her family wondered about the lack of emotion Jason showed at the time of Paula's funeral and his reluctance to stand by his wife's casket at the funeral home. Quote,

He had all the answers and could have ended the suffering, but instead he moved on without any regard for anyone but himself. I have to live every day without my sweet baby sister in my life. Outside court, Lynn told reporters she thought at times that a day of reckoning would never come. Quote, it is due to the perseverance of many dedicated professionals that has led to prosecution. It is our hope that today's decision will begin to bring some peace to our families, friends in the community, and we can start to move forward with Paula in our hearts. One might think that Lynn and Lana's tireless campaign for justice for Paula had now come to an end.

However, they were inspired by Paula's life and legacy to continue. but on a different campaign. Now they wanted to work to give a voice to the many victims of violence against women. Over the years, they've continued to work with politicians, the public and the media to create awareness for the rights and needs of victims. In July 2015,

Lynn Galant Blackburn spoke at the annual general meeting of Autumn House, a shelter in Nova Scotia that offers services to women who have been abused by an intimate partner. quote, there's something everyone can do to prevent violence against women, and we need collectively to continue to be a voice to advocate against what is a prevalent pandemic in our society. Every single person can take an action to create that awareness and work to ending violence against women.

In October 2016, Lynn traveled to London, Ontario to deliver an emotional speech at the media launch of that year Shine the Light on Women Abuse Campaign. She was featured in a video message along with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Hello, my friends. It is an honor to join the London Abused Women's Centers Shine the Light on Woman Abuse Campaign.

Far too many women and girls here in Canada and around the world suffer physical and psychological harm at the hands of others, and often people they love and trust. Paula lived life to the fullest. She had an incredible style about making people feel good. It was her kindness, her thoughtfulness, her sensitivity. She was a strong educator who brought a lot of creativity and adventure into her classroom.

And when she gave birth to Anna, she blossomed as a woman. and as a mom. Paula's daughter, Anna, is now 12 years old and is being raised by Paula's sister Lana Kenny, her husband and their two children. Anna will likely not remember her mother, but there is no doubt that she will know the closeness of her family and how much her mother was loved by her community and cherished by her sisters. The website www.pola gallant.com is still live.

It has its original look and feel of 2007, but every link still works. It's clear that it's been lovingly maintained as a sort of virtual memorial to Paula. It's also a font of information on her, her life, her interests, and the case. There is a message at the bottom of the website that says, In closing, we are reminded that each day granted is a gift and we should never regret one. While both men and women experience violence, statistics indicate that women do experience higher rates. Approximately every six days, a woman in Canada is killed by her intimate partner. In 2014, there were 83 police reported intimate partner homicides in Canada.

67 of the victims, over 80%, were women. If you think someone you know is being abused, here's a recommendation. course of action according to the Canadian Women's Foundation. If there is immediate danger, call 911. If you're in Australia, it's triple zero or triple nine in the UK. Put their safety first. Never talk about it in front of their suspected abuser. If your friend wants to talk, be there to listen.

And if they don't want to talk, just tell them they do not deserve to be harmed and that you're concerned for their safety. Ask what you can do to help as long as it doesn't put you in danger. If your friend decides to stay in the relationship, try not to judge. Remember, leaving an abuser can be extremely dangerous. Sometimes all you can do is be there. And lastly, be aware of the emergency services available in your community,

such as a women's shelter or sexual assault center. Thanks for listening. And thanks again to my awesome voices. Jordan from the Nighttime podcast playing Jason McCray. This time his accent was a lot more appropriate because he is also from Nova Scotia. And of course, Jack Luna from Dark Topic who played the undercover cop. This case was a listener suggestion. Thanks to Johnny W.

I have almost 200 cases on my listener suggestion list now. More than enough to keep me going for quite a while. So thank you to everyone who has sent this. via Facebook, Gmail, Instagram and Twitter. So if you like this show and you wanted to support it, there's a couple of ways. You could tell a friend to listen or recommend my podcast via social media

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My patrons receive rewards in exchange for their contributions, like early releases of ad-free episodes, being in the know with a list of upcoming cases I'm working on, show transcripts, video AMAs, and more. My goal with the Patreon is to be able to outsource the assistance I need to get you episodes more frequently. So, before I get to the podcast recommendations, I wanted to shout out to my new patrons at the time of recording.

Gavin, Joel H., Eunice C., Jill H., Gillian from the Awesome Court Junkie podcast, M.S.C., Rebecca M., Marie H., Larissa, Joe, Henry W., Sabrina G., Isabella P., Satchel P., Mallory V, Caitlin F. D. D. D. Kevin M. Kirsten C. Internet dispensary. Leslie O. Jillian K. and Kate F. Thank you all so much for supporting the show in this way. And as always, thank you to everyone who takes the time to message me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or send me an email on Gmail. So my podcast recommendations for this episode are the first is true crime island with my pal cambo ford from sydney australia true crime island has got a bit of a

cult following now not only is it well researched and presented in a straightforward way but it's also quintessentially australian listen and you'll find out what i mean hi i'm cambo from true crime island another true crime podcast every two weeks i'll bring you true crime stories from all over the world Go to my website, truecrime Island.com, where you can download or stream each episode or search for me on iTunes or your favorite podcatcher. So grab a beer and pull up a deck chair and listen to True Crime Island. And if you enjoy the true crime shows with a more humorous and conversational take, then you should definitely give 36 times a lesson.

Hey, Krista. Hey, Lily. Did you know in your lifetime you'll have? of murderers 36 times. I did. And you know why? Why? Because we're 36 times. A Canadian true crime podcast which covers crimes in the Great White North. All right. Every episode we focus on a major crime and then we lighten things up with a kooky one. We talk about everything from the criminal justice system itself to animals arguably not doing what they should, bringing you true crime with a shot of maple syrup. Catch our episodes biweekly on iTunes

or your favorite, that's favorite with the you podcast app. Canadian True Crime podcast is researched, written and narrated by me with audio production and additional original scoring by Eric Crosby. I'll be back soon with another Canadian true crime story. See you soon.