A Prince Albert, Sask., landlord is recovering in hospital after a shooting his family believes stemmed from a contentious eviction.
Jim Primeau was shot in the back yard of his rental property on June 4, the day an evicted tenant cleared her belongings from the property.
The 57-year-old survived the shooting and is recovering, but suffered a spinal cord injury and had to be placed in a medically induced coma for four days.
“This changed all of our lives: Jimmy’s drastically, but also ours, his four sisters, who will now be his caregivers for life,” Primeau’s sister, Peggy Epp said.
“We love our brother and we’re gonna do everything we can to help him recover.”
Epp is calling for changes to the province’s eviction process after what she describes as a legal but unsafe eviction.
“He followed the law, did what he was told, and the end result is he’s shot in the throat,” Epp said.
Prince Albert police have not confirmed a connection between the eviction and Primeau being shot.
According to Epp, a woman approached Primeau in March looking to live in one of his suites, but said she could not afford to pay the full rent. Primeau accepted half a month’s rent and let her move in, Epp said.
“He was a good guy just trying to help this woman.”
Epp said the situation spiralled, with the tenant refusing to pay the rent for the next three months.
She said her brother followed the legal eviction process, getting a court order from the Office of Residential Tenancies.
The notice was served to the tenant and she was allowed to come on June 4 to collect her belongings.
“Jim phoned and said, ‘She just threatened my life,'” Epp said.
Epp said a man showed up at the home shortly after that and shot Primeau.
“Jim said, ‘I didn’t get to say anything. He pointed that gun at me and shot me,'” Epp said.
A police news release says officers responded to a report of a shooting and found a man with gunshot wounds.
“The suspect and the victim are believed to be known to each other,” the release said.
Police said in a separate statement that they’d been called to the property earlier in the day about a disturbance.
No arrests have been made in the case.
Epp said the process failed her brother and could fail others, too.
“The whole system needs an overhaul,” she said.
Landon Field, CEO of Rental Housing Saskatchewan, said stories like Primeau’s are becoming increasingly common.
“I hear stories anecdotally from people working on the front lines who face threats of violent harassment — whether that’s a knife being pulled on you or threats sent to you by text,” Field said.
“Violence is never acceptable. Whether you’re a renter, property manager, landlord — nobody should face that when doing their job.”
Field said Primeau did everything right.
“It’s very frustrating to read a story like this, because they did follow the legal process and it still resulted in tragedy.”
Field said the system can be slow and costly, especially for small landlords. He said his organization is looking at possible changes, including reducing the 15-day nonpayment period.
“We are currently reviewing the Residential Tenancies Act and will be putting forward a couple of proposed amendments in the next couple of weeks,” he said.
Field’s organization is also pushing for more education for landlords and more accountability.
“A well-educated and professional landlord leads to professional and successful tenancies,” he said. “That benefits renters right across the province.”
Epp said she is hoping to meet with other landlords in Prince Albert in the coming weeks to help advocate for change.
Despite the trauma, she said her brother’s kindness — and her own — won’t go away.
“I’m always giving people a few dollars. I’m always buying meals. I hand out gloves in the wintertime,” she said.
“We’re compassionate people, but this makes me very angry.”
Primeau’s sisters have organized a GoFundMe campaign to support his recovery.
