Richardson family murders

[9][13] For a time, it was feared that she might have also been a victim, but she was arrested the following day in the community of Leader, Saskatchewan, about 130 kilometres (81 mi) away, with her 23-year-old boyfriend Jeremy Allan Steinke, after investigators had uncovered a stick figure drawing depicting her family being murdered inside Jasmine's locker at school.

The family initially struggled to pay bills and had to rely on food banks, but were able to eventually purchase a home and move to Medicine Hat, in part thanks to a promotion Marc received at his job, in 2005.

[16] Jasmine was described as a bright and studious straight-A student who made the honor roll at her Catholic school and was actively involved in the fine arts program, as well as being an outgoing and sociable young girl who made lots of friends, held an active social life, and enjoyed typical teen interests.

However, with her increasing social media usage and interest in the goth subculture, and her continuously becoming friends with older men, her parents began to worry.

Richardson's behavior soon deteriorated after that, with frequent rule-breaking such as repeatedly violating the school dress code in favor of unauthorized gothic attire, and being argumentative with her parents.

Her social media profiles and the contents thereof were also of great concern to her family; she created numerous accounts on various social networking sites such as MySpace and Zorpia in which she falsified her age as being older than she actually was, posted inappropriate photos, claimed to be bisexual and Wiccan and drink alcohol, and indicated she possessed disturbing interests such as serial killers, scarification, and "kinky shit".

Even while under the mounting pressure of increased scrutiny by her parents, the two became close, frequenting local concerts and the mall together as well as corresponding with one another on social media, and eventually, they began a relationship.

Jeremy and his mother frequently moved around due to the onslaught of violence and chaos in their home, and he spoke of never being able to properly make friends as a result.

"[16] According to May, he had been diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and placed in a program at his school for developmentally disabled youth; this elicited further ridicule from other students.

[16] Steinke came into contact with the goth subculture and slowly began to immerse himself in it, listening to heavy metal music, aspiring to be a metal musician himself, and manufacturing his appearance to 'acceptably' meet the standards of the goth lifestyle, including dressing in all-black, wearing dark eyeliner and face paint, and shaving his head.

[16] Steinke, drunk and high on a number of different substances including cocaine, marijuana, and ecstasy, entered the Richardson family home through a basement window.

Witnesses observed Jasmine Richardson laughing and talking joyously with other attendees, as well as her sitting in Steinke's lap and passionately making out with him, giving no indication of what had transpired mere hours before.

At one point, Steinke blurted out that he had killed his girlfriend's family, stating that he "gutted them like fish," with Richardson corroborating and adding, "My little brother gargled."

After the party, they fled along with Kacy Lancaster, Kaylee, and another teenaged girl to Leader, Saskatchewan, where they were located at a convenience store and arrested.

[25] "My girlfriends family are totally unfair, They say that they really care, They don’t know what is going on, they just assume, As their greed continues to consume, She is slowly going insane, She continues to thank [sic] that I came into her life to help her out, And to stop what they keep trying to shout, It’s all total bullshit, Their throats I want to slit, They will regret the shit they have done, Especially when I see to it that they are gone, They shall pay for their insulince [sic], Finally there shall be silence, Their blood shall be payment!"

Through private messages on Nexopia, the two had begun devising plans to kill Richardson's family, ostensibly freeing her of her parents' reign.

School friends of Jasmine also concur that she was the one who initiated the discussion, contending that they had overheard her speaking with Jeremy on the phone at recess about killing her parents.

Steinke had written to a friend on his public Nexopia page, three days before the murders: "I on the other hand would rather do morbid stuff to others, like Jaxz' rents [sic] for example!

[27] Just hours prior to committing the murders, Steinke and some friends reportedly watched the 1994 film Natural Born Killers, about a young couple who go on a violent killing spree.

In September 2011, Richardson began attending classes at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta during the final years of her sentence.

[33] She was released from a ten-year sentence at a psychiatric hospital in the fall of 2011, and in October 2012, it was reported her rehabilitation was going well, and she expressed remorse for her actions that experts considered genuine.

[36] During early court proceedings, it was theorized that he would be prosecuted for statutory rape due to his unlawful relationship with Jasmine, but this charge was ultimately never pursued.