Man in Café Stabbing Trial Apologizes to Victim's Family

In Vancouver's B.C. Supreme Court, Inderdeep Singh Gosal, a man charged with second-degree murder in a fatal café stabbing nearly three years ago, directly apologized to the victim's family on Thursday, expressing deep remorse and a wish to turn back time. The incident, which claimed the life of Paul Schmidt on March 26, 2023, unfolded on a patio near a Starbucks and was captured on video that circulated widely on social media.

Gosal, appearing in court in a blue sweater over a white collared shirt, has pleaded not guilty to the charge. During his testimony last week, he described finding the knife in an alley earlier that day and interpreting it as a divine signal to arm himself for protection. The altercation began as a verbal exchange between Gosal, who was smoking near the café entrance, and Schmidt, who approached him. It quickly escalated into a physical confrontation, ending with Schmidt stabbed six times in the chest and lying in a pool of blood on the patio.

Gosal's lawyer, Gloria Ng, has argued that her client was in the midst of a psychotic episode due to untreated schizophrenia and psychosis at the time. She told the court that while Gosal intended to cause harm, he...