Judge orders sale of B.C. house, with proceeds going to teen beating victim

A Supreme Court judge in Kamloops, B.C., has ordered for the sale of a home belonging to the parents of a man who pleaded guilty to nearly beating a teenage boy to death, with proceeds going to the victim.

The judge found 39-year-old Kristopher Teichrieb transferred his home to his parents for just $1—months after attacking 17-year-old Jessie Simpson with a metal baseball bat—to avoid paying any future financial judgements against him.

The teen had allegedly trespassed on Teichrieb’s Kamloops property in June 2016, after leaving a grad party, and was hit on the head with the bat multiple times, crushing his skull and leaving him with permanent brain damage.

“Jessie lost five litres of blood that night and ended up in a coma. For 10 and a half months we were together in the hospital,“ Jessie’s mom, Sue Simpson, said in an exclusive interview with CTV News.

Teichrieb was originally charged with attempted murder, but pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and served 40 months in prison.

Simpson said the sentence and time served was a slap in the face. “It’s unjust for what he did to Jessie,” she said. “I look at my little boy, he struggles every day. He’s in a nursing home, in a diaper.”

Now age 25, Jessie will require round-the-clock care for the rest of his life. In 2021, his mom won a nearly $7-million civil judgement against Teichrieb to help pay for that care, but she hasn’t seen a penny.

Her lawyer argued Teichrieb transferred ownership of his home, which was his only asset, seven months after the attack to avoid paying any future financial settlement to the Simpson family.

On Thursday, Kamloops Supreme Court Justice Joel Groves agreed.

Justice Groves ordered the home to be sold this April, with proceeds going to Jessie. Teichrieb’s parents will need to vacate the property by the end of April.

“It’s great that we won—There is still a lot to figure out, so we can’t really talk about it right now. But what he did to Jessie isn’t going to change. No amount of money is going to bring my son back,” said Sue Simpson. “I don’t know if I feel justice. I just look at my son and I want my baby back. That’s all I want.”

While she knows her son will never be the same, Simpson says she celebrates small victories with him.

“Bringing him home was a pretty big treat for all of us. We had our first Christmas together this year, our first Thanksgiving and our first birthday in our home. That was huge for us,” she said.

Bringing Jessie home for visits is difficult and costly. A friend has set up an online fundraiser for his mom while she waits for proceeds of the sale of Teichrieb’s home.

“We got a lot of support from the community not only Kamloops, Vancouver, everywhere right across BC people love Jessie,” said Simpson. “We have gone through some pretty big hurdles in the last six-and-a-half years, and I’m really proud of Jessie. Very proud.”

Simpson says she’s working on a book about her journey with Jessie and the justice system, to help other parents navigate trauma.

“We were given a second chance with Jessie, and I believe that I can give back. So that’s what I want to do.”