Regis Korchinski-Paquet’s Family Seeks Answers, Inquest Hears Epilepsy History

Coroner Examining 2020 Balcony Fall in Toronto Hears History of Epilepsy

A Toronto woman who fell to her death from a 24th-floor balcony while police were inside her apartment over six years ago had a long-standing medical history of epileptic seizures often followed by disorientation and aggressive behavior, a coroner’s inquest heard Tuesday.

Regis Korchinski-Paquet, a 29-year-old woman of Ukrainian, Black, and Indigenous ancestry, died on May 27, 2020, following an emergency police response to a violent family disturbance, ctvnews.ca reported. The ongoing coroner’s inquest, slated to last 14 days with 13 witnesses scheduled to testify, aims to examine how first responders interact with individuals experiencing medical crises influenced by postictal delirium.

Chronology of Medical Incidents Preceding the May 2020 Tragedy

Medical records presented to the jury detailed a multi-year pattern of severe epileptic episodes. Korchinski-Paquet experienced two seizures on the morning of May 27, 2020, hours before officers arrived at her home, coroner’s counsel noted.

* October 2017: An ambulance was dispatched after Korchinski-Paquet exhibited confusion on a public transit bus. She walked out of the medical vehicle and directly into oncoming traffic, which experts cited as evidence of severely impaired environmental awareness and judgment.
* September 2019: Family members reported a volatile disturbance involving a knife and aggression. Neurologists noted that Korchinski-Paquet had missed her anti-seizure medication on that day, a known trigger for acute episodes.
* May 27, 2020: Korchinski-Paquet made three of the five emergency calls placed to police during a rapidly escalating household dispute. A neurologist reviewing the audio recordings testified that she sounded repetitive and distressed, displaying signs of cognitive impairment.

Neurological Testimony on Postictal Delirium and Psychosis

Dr. Julien Hébert, a neurologist specializing in epilepsy, testified that Korchinski-Paquet’s documented medical history aligned with postictal delirium or postictal psychosis—altered mental states that routinely follow epileptic seizures.

Postictal psychosis typically involves a severe disconnect from reality, while postictal delirium manifests primarily as extreme confusion and an altered state of awareness. Hébert suggested jurors consider recommending broader public and first-responder education regarding how epilepsy alters cognitive function and behavior.

Inquest counsel Roger Shallow emphasized that the proceedings will focus strictly on how emergency personnel identify and respond to epilepsy-related behavioral changes, rather than reviewing broader mental health care systems or prior police watchdog conclusions. Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit previously cleared responding Toronto police officers of wrongdoing, determining that Korchinski-Paquet fell while attempting to cross from her apartment balcony to an adjacent unit.