The scars on Catherine Linder’s neck and body will be a reminder of how an ordinary day changed her life.
“It was just a normal Thursday afternoon at the office,” he said. “I was doing paperwork and answering some calls when he came in and wanted to speak to one of our attorneys who wasn’t in.”
Linder says it wasn’t until she and the intern told them they could get the lawyer on the phone that she asked to use the restroom.
“Our summer student took her back there to do that and he came out a few minutes later with a gun pointed at us and said I have to talk to him or I’m going to kill you both,” Linder recalled.
Linder tried to call another organization where the attorney was located when she was forced into an office at gunpoint.
“He closed the door, which would have been for privacy, but when he pushed the two chairs up against the door, my heart kind of stopped and I went, oh, that’s not good,” Linder said.
Held there for an hour, Linder says a police negotiator called, but she had to hang up on him. A second call was made by the negotiator, but Linder said that didn’t change anything. She says the negotiator called a third time and Linder answered it and that’s when the attacker pointed the gun at her and told her to get on her knees and turn around.
“The next thing I knew he was standing in front of me pointing the gun at me,” Linder said. “He said get down on his knees and he turned around and I said ‘you don’t want to do that’ and he said it again so I stood up a little bit straighter because I was leaning against a file cabinet and I thought if ‘You’re going to hurt me, you’re going to look me in the eye and you’re going to do it.’
Linder tried to fight her off by pressing on her chest. He let out a scream and then two police officers burst into the room.
“They pulled her off me and the one officer kept his hand on my neck the whole time until we got into the ambulance where the paramedics were,” he said.
She was stabbed in the neck several times. Covered in blood, Linder was rushed to hospital and needed 56 stitches to repair her wounds.
“I remember looking down at my thumb and seeing the cut, then looking down and seeing the blood on my shirt and all the files on the desk, but I really didn’t know what had happened,” Linder told CTV. interview on Friday.
Linder doesn’t remember the ambulance ride to the hospital, but says she spent eight days in recovery.
Recounting the incident, Linder says that during that time in the office she remembers praying.
“I thought how is this going to be done? What’s next? Mostly very calm, I was praying a lot because that’s how I overcome any bad situation,” she explained.
BLOOD DONATION
After the hostage situation, Linder’s best friend, Alana Wheeler, began planning a blood drive in her honor. “Knowing that he lost a lot of blood, it was just one of those ironies, I guess we never know what’s going to happen and life is short and it’s such a good reason to give blood,” Wheeler said. Linder is an active donor, and Wheeler thought the drive would be a great way to raise awareness of blood donation while honoring her friend. The blood drive will take place August 9-11 at the Lethbridge Plasma Donor Centre. As for Linder, she is expected to make a full recovery. “Physically and mentally I will recover because I am strong,” she said. “Everyone has been asking me if I need anything or if I need help, the support from my family and friends has been overwhelming.” Linder isn’t sure when she’ll be back at work, but says she’s grateful for everyone who helped her. “Those two officers who were there first saved my life without a doubt, I have to credit my faith and God, I shouldn’t have survived,” Linder said. Courtney Louise Shaw is charged with attempted murder. He remains in custody pending a Sept. 1 court date.
