Mental assessment ordered for Resolute Bay man charged with murder

A Resolute Bay man will undergo an assessment to determine if he is mentally fit to stand trial in the death of his mother.

Babah Kalluk, who was 44 years old at the time, was arrested by the RCMP on Nov. 23, 2024, after the discovery of a woman’s body at a home in Resolute Bay. The woman was identified as Babah Kalluk’s mother, Zipporah Kalluk.

Babah Kalluk, who has been in custody since his arrest, appeared in court in Iqaluit Thursday for the final day of his preliminary hearing which started Monday.

Preliminary hearings are held to determine whether evidence supports the case proceeding to a trial. Details of evidence presented at the hearing are protected under a court-ordered publication ban.

Justice Mark Mossey determined there is enough evidence for the case to proceed to trial for first-degree murder. If convicted, Kalluk would have to serve a mandatory life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years.

However, Kalluk’s defence lawyer Matthew Eaton-Kent made an application for an assessment of Kalluk’s mental condition.

Mossey granted the assessment, which would determine whether Kalluk was suffering from a mental disorder at the time of the alleged offence making him “exempt from criminal responsibility,” according to the Criminal Code.

The assessment will be made by a doctor from Ontario.

Previously, Zipporah Kalluk’s family called the lack of mental health care in Nunavut communities a “scourge” that contributed to her death.

Babah Kalluk is scheduled to appear in court again on May 26 for a “check-in” on the status of the assessment.