Sooke resident Adam John Steenbergen sat hunched over in the prisoner’s dock, looking at the ground as he awaited sentencing for the killing of his friend, a father of two, after the duo tested a bulletproof vest.
Earlier this year, Steenbergen pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the March 12, 2023, death of 42-year-old Michael Leier, as well as two firearms offences.
Shortly after Justice Jennifer Duncan entered the courtroom on the afternoon of May 7, Crown counsel Jeni Gillings delivered the admission of facts in front of a weeping crowd, divided between the family of the victim and the accused.
“On the evening of March 11, 2023, Leier went out for dinner to the West Coast Grill in Sooke with his wife Heather, and their two children,” said Gillings.
At the restaurant, Leier bumped into Steenbergen, with whom he’s been friends for several years. After a short exchange, the two made plans for the remainder of the night as Heather agreed to return back home with their two kids.
As the two men left the restaurant, they embarked on an overnight bender throughout Sooke, explained Gillings.
Their night began at a wrestling show at the Sooke Community Centre before the two men went to Sooke Brewing Company, then the Legion, and later attended a house party.
Steenbergen and Leier stayed at the party for several hours before leaving in Leier’s Ford F-150, which Leier drove at around 4 a.m. the following morning.
Gillings said the two men continued drinking alcohol and using cocaine at Steenbergen’s home. On the morning of March 12, the pair drove to Fore Bay Road near Jordan River to go shooting.
“They took guns, ammunition, and bulletproof vests with them,” said Gillings. “These items belonged to Steenbergen.”
One of the weapons was a Polymer 80 semi-automatic firearm, while the other was a Cobray M10 fully automatic firearm. The ammunition included a high-capacity magazine and multiple loose rounds.
In the early afternoon that same day, the two men continued driving along a remote logging road toward Diversion Dam before their truck became stuck in the March snow.
“They left the vehicle there and decided to go shooting at that location,” said Gillings. “At some point, while they were in the bush, Leier put on a bulletproof vest. Steenbergen helped him put it on. By this time, they had been drinking throughout the day. Once he had the vest on, Leier said, ‘Don’t be a bitch… do it.’ The plan was for Steenbergen to shoot at Leier and for Steenbergen to ‘take the next round.’”
Gillings noted both men had already done this routine before, but with different vests.
“Steenbergen shot at Leier with a Polymer 80 gun and struck him in the chest, and he immediately dropped to the ground. At first, Steenbergen thought he was ‘faking it and joking.’ When he realized that Leier was injured, Steenbergen dragged him to the truck, took the vest off and tried to keep pressure on the wound.”
Reports indicate that Steenbergen attempted to free the truck from the snow but was unable to move it and had no cell service to call for help.
Steenbergen initially stayed with Leier, but after nightfall, he left him in the truck and ran for help. After about 20 minutes, he flagged down a passing vehicle. The passengers agreed to help them transport Steenbergen and Leier toward Sooke.
Once they regained cell service, the group called 911 and met paramedics shortly after 9 p.m. in the 8500-block of West Coast Road.
Paramedics began chest compressions and observed a dime-sized wound to Leier’s chest. Steenbergen told them it was a gunshot wound. By that point, Leier’s skin was cold to the touch, his pupils were dilated and he had no pulse.
Leier was later pronounced dead.
RCMP officers arrived shortly after 10 p.m., where Steenbergen provided a brief account of what happened. He was arrested and interviewed the following morning by investigators with the Vancouver Island Integrated Major Crime Unit before being released without charge later that day.
Investigators later located Leier’s truck and searched the surrounding area, finding spent 9-mm shell casings beneath the snow. Police also found blood outside the passenger-side door, along with multiple empty alcohol containers and vodka bottles scattered around the truck.
Officers recovered two firearms and two bulletproof vests – one intact and another damaged, with a bullet fragment embedded in the front plate and blood on it.
Steenbergen did not have any firearms registered in his name and was not licensed or authorized to possess firearms.
One of the firearms was classified as restricted, while the other was prohibited because it was fully automatic.
Nearly a year later, on March 9, 2024, Steenbergen was arrested and charged with manslaughter and firearms offences.
During a police interview, Gillings said Steenbergen provided limited information but admitted the two men were “pretty wasted” on the day of Leier’s death.
Gillings added that Steenbergen became emotional at times and said that if he could change spots with Mike, he would.
The pathologist determined Leier died from a single gunshot wound to the chest and noted the injury was consistent with “there having been a firm surface present overlying the entrance wound at the time of the passage of the bullet.”
The report found the bullet’s impact caused fragments of Leier’s sternum to break apart, creating a secondary projectile that perforated the sac surrounding the heart and caused massive blood loss.
“Death would have been swift,” said Gillings.
Leier was 42 at the time of his death. He is survived by friends and family, including his wife, Heather Leier. The couple had been together for about five years before marrying in September 2019.
He was also the father of two boys, who are now nine-years-old and six-years-old.
As sobs punctuated the court, several family members of Leier delivered their victim impact statement. Among them was Leier’s nine-year-old son.
“I miss my dad’s snuggles and armpit tickles,” the son wrote in a letter read aloud in court by his cousin. “I feel so angry and sad. School’s hard. I feel sad when my friends talk about their dad. I hate that. He made my life harder.
“I’m sad my dad will never get to see me go to jiu-jitsu or go to the duck race with us.”
Shortly after, Leier’s widow, Heather, took the podium to speak about the pain the loss has caused her family and the toll it has taken on everyone’s mental health.
“I experience anxiety and constant depression every single day,” she said. “My children now have to grow up without their father. The daily struggle to get myself together for them is immense and exhausting.”
Three years after the killing of her husband, Leier said her family is still dealing with ongoing trauma that requires extensive therapy and counselling.
“My husband lived life to the fullest,” she said. “He had the best goofy laugh. I’m so lucky to have had him in my life.
“Mike always said it’s easier to ask for forgiveness later. Too bad this time, he can’t.”
During the last sentencing hearing on Friday, May 8, defence lawyer Neil Brooks said Steenbergen grew up as a respected member of the community, playing hockey, working with his dad, and he was described as a protector, bright, energetic, and deeply caring. Drug addiction, however, took hold of him.
“This has broken so many hearts, but this is a friendship. It was a good friendship. They were close, they were good friends, they had known each other for years and years, and on the evening of the 11th, just by happenstance, they unexpectedly crossed paths at a restaurant, and they decided to spend the night together,” said Brooks.
“That was it. There was nothing at that stage, it was just two buddies that were going out for a night,” he said. “Now what followed was a prolonged period of intense substance use, throughout the night, and the next afternoon.”
After the shooting, Brooks considered that Steenbergen went for help, and immediately admitted his role to police on the scene.
“Adam didn’t hesitate. He didn’t deflect, he didn’t attempt to hide his role in this. He immediately and honestly answered, ‘I did.’ And he’s carried that weight with him ever since,” said Brooks.
In a number of support letters from Steenbergen’s friends, family and counsellor, they lauded the work he has done to better himself. He got clean, has been working again and has been getting mental health support since the incident.
“The remorse he carries is real, and I wholeheartedly know that he will carry it for the rest of his life,” said Brooks, quoting a letter from Steenbergan’s cousin.
“The remorse he will carry. The guilt he has to carry, all of these negativities, he will carry. The punishment, justice, the punishment. He’s before the court to accept that. And he’ll have to learn to not punish himself every day,” he added.
Fighting through tears and sobs, Steenbergen stood up and was allowed to apologize to the dozens of weeping people in the gallery – both his and Leier’s family and friends.
“He was a loyal man,” said Steenbergen.
“There is absolutely nothing I can say to bring him back. From the bottom of my heart, if I had one second, I would take his spot right now. If I could see him. I will stand by that until the day I die,” he added.
When making her decision, Duncan said his guilty plea, the lack of a criminal record, and his remorse were considered mitigating factors, while the illegal firearms, the deliberate transportation of the guns, using guns while intoxicated, and the impact on Leier’s family were aggravating factors.
“I agree that Mr. Steenbergen’s moral blameworthiness is low, but Mr. Lear’s death was the product of breathtaking recklessness. Mr. Steenbergen will live with the consequences for the rest of his life,” said Duncan.
For the manslaughter charge, Steenbergen was sentenced to four years, the mandatory minimum. For two counts of possessing a prohibited firearm, he was given one year and three months, which will be served concurrently with the manslaughter charge. One charge of careless use or storage of a firearm was stayed by the court.