Shou Chen once stood condemned as a murderer. Now, in his ninth decade, he is simply a man who took a life – a life that remains irrevocably lost.
The brutal reality unfolded in October 2014, behind a Toronto community centre. Police discovered Xian Xu Liu, 65, her face so severely damaged it was initially mistaken for a gunshot wound. She lay lifeless, a victim of a senseless attack.
Liu and Chen shared a past rooted in rural China, connected through a shared factory where Chen once crafted fortune cookies. A simple kindness – Liu offering vegetables from her garden – masked the darkness that would soon erupt. On a crisp autumn morning, their paths crossed during Liu’s daily walk.
Surveillance footage captured eight minutes of conversation before the unthinkable happened. Chen, on his bicycle, suddenly unleashed a violent assault, striking Liu repeatedly with a metal pipe. He was quickly identified through the video and apprehended, still wearing the same clothes, with Liu’s DNA found on his clothing and the weapon.
Initially, Chen’s family attributed his increasingly erratic behavior to declining mental health, seeking help from a traditional healer in China. The court later deemed this a “shockingly ill-advised” course of action. Despite arguments for a not criminally responsible verdict, he was sentenced to life with no parole for ten years.
That conviction was overturned. Chen, unable to fully understand the proceedings due to a lack of proper translation into his Taishanese dialect, was granted a reprieve. Instead of a retrial, he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter.
The courtroom heard a harrowing account of the crime, a stark reminder of the pain inflicted upon Liu’s family. The Crown attorney emphasized the enduring impact of Chen’s actions, noting the family’s continued suffering. His plea spared them the ordeal of reliving the trauma in another trial.
Chen, now 81, has been diagnosed with late-onset schizophrenia and dementia. The judge ultimately sentenced him to ten years – time already served – and a lifelong peace bond, prohibiting contact with Liu’s family.
But the hearing transcended Chen’s fate. The judge powerfully reminded all present that behind the legal terms lay a profound loss. Xian Xu Liu was not merely a “deceased” – she was a mother, wife, aunt, grandmother, and friend.
Her absence created a void that could never be filled. The judge’s words served as a poignant tribute to a life cut short, a plea to remember the woman beyond the tragedy, and a final, direct message to Chen: to remember the weight of his actions and to find some measure of peace.
