It was a reckless game trying to cheat death. Two friends driven by cocaine and alcohol, one bulletproof vest, and one gun.
It’s a game no one won.
The plan was one shot to the chest each. It was a game Adam Steenbergen and Mike Leier had reportedly played before.
But this time they had a new bulletproof vest.
On March 12, 2023 up a remote logging road in Jordan River, chance had Steenbergen shooting first.
Leier, a 42-year-old husband and father of two, reportedly egged him on.
“Don’t be a b****. Just f****** do it,” Leier reportedly said.
Steenbergen shot at Leier with a semi-automatic firearm in the chest. Hours later, Leier died.
Watch the full report by CHEK’s Kori Sidaway below:
After a joint submission between Crown and defence, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Jennifer Duncan handed Steenbergen the mandatory minimum for manslaughter with a firearm: four years in prison, while calling Leier’s death “a product of breathtaking recklessness.”
Leier leaves behind a wife and two sons. His 9-year-old boy told the court in a statement that he misses his dad’s hugs, snuggles and armpit tickles.
Steenbergen’s lawyer, Neil Brooks, said Steenbergen was in the throes of addiction at the time of the shooting and has since undergone treatment to quit drinking and drugs.
Brooks also emphasized that Steenbergen has taken responsibility for the shooting from the beginning, including Friday, when he stood up to speak directly to Leier’s widow, Heather.
“There is absolutely nothing I can say that will bring him back,” Steenbergen said. “From the bottom of my heart, if I had one second, I would take his f****** spot if I could see him. I will stand by that until the day I die.”
In her delivery, Justice Duncan acknowledged how agonizing Leier’s death has been for so many people.
Steenbergen will serve the four year sentence of manslaughter concurrently with two other convictions of possessing a prohibited or restricted firearm.
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