WARNING: This article contains graphic details heard in court that may be disturbing to some readers.

Chris Forrester was killed with a knife he gave him as a Christmas present before their relationship collapsed, accused murderer Rick Patrick told a Barrie courtroom Thursday.

“It all happened extremely quickly,” Patrick described the deadly confrontation, which occurred on a cold, windy night when he arrived in his driveway on Galloway Avenue in Midland nine days before Christmas in 2021.

Patrick, who is charged with second-degree murder, said that as he exited his vehicle, he could see a crouching figure at the end of the driveway. He reached for the knife he said was a gift from Forrester.

“I felt the cold steel of the knife,” Patrick said as he reached into his vehicle to retrieve the gun.

Patrick said he had little memory of stabbing Forrester, except that the springing action of his car door played a role in preventing him from escaping and that the catastrophic impact of the knife created a force that contributed to the plunge into Forrester’s chest.

Forrester, an Orillia native who moved to Midland several years ago, died less than an hour later at a Midland hospital from a single stab wound to the heart.

“He looked at me and said ‘you stabbed me,'” Patrick testified, saying the two men were just over a foot apart.

Superior Court Judge Clyde Smith later instructed the jury that the distance Patrick described was approximately 14 inches.

“Did you intend to kill Chris?” asked defense attorney Aliston Craig.

“No ma’am,” Patrick replied.

Craig’s direct examination took approximately two hours. In it, Craig asked Patrick to describe how the two men met and how the defendant came to own the caravan.

Patrick testified that he bought it from a dying friend he met while playing darts at the Midland Royal Canadian Legion, and the two men agreed on a discounted price of $90,000.

“This wasn’t just about helping Robert,” Patrick said of his dying friend. “Such a price was too good (to pass up).”

The caravan, located on Viks Road in Midland, soon became his residence after Forrester needed new accommodation after being evicted from his previous home in a hotel in Fesserton.

Despite their 30-year age difference, Patrick says he and Forrester quickly became close.

“I treated him like a son,” he testified.

The living arrangement was due to end in May 2020 so Patrick could transfer the property to a buyer he had previously arranged.

The relationship became strained after Patrick learned the details of a conviction for causing bodily harm to which Forrester had recently pleaded guilty and failed to pay his rent on time, according to testimony Thursday.

Patrick testified that Forrester also allowed him to serve house arrest, a condition of the trailer assault sentence.

Cross-examination of the defendant began after lunch, but soon reached an impasse when Crown attorney Dennis Chronopoulos attempted to question Patrick about the various steps the defendant had taken through the Landlord and Tenant Board court and the vast amount of paperwork required.

Defendant gave multiple “I don’t remember” responses when pressed on various interactions he had with Forrester regarding his attempt to evict her.

Patrick admitted that he was eventually able to collect more than $10,000 in unpaid rent from Forrester about five months before he killed her.

Chronopoulos also got Patrick to explain how adept both men were at wielding knives, from which they threw weapons at targets at Patrick’s Port Severn property.

“Have you thrown a knife before?” Chronopoulos asked.

“Yes, definitely,” Patrick replied.

Despite the grave nature of the hearing, there were a few light moments before the court adjourned for a day.

When pressing Patrick for details about who he was trying to sell the trailer to, Patrick said the proposed buyer was his cousin’s son.

“So he’s your nephew?” Before realizing he was wrong, Chronopoulos asked, “Was it removed twice or something else (to that effect)?” he asked.

Patrick smiled from the podium and replied: “My grandmother had 21 children, so I have a lot of cousins.”

Moments later, Chronopoulos attempted to give appropriate context to Forrester’s living circumstances to clarify Patrick’s statement that Forrester was not neat and tidy in the trailer.

“He was single,” Chronopoulos gestured to Patrick at the podium.

“So was I. We won’t judge,” Patrick replied with a grin.

At least one juror let out an audible chuckle, along with several members from the public gallery.

The trial will continue on Friday and the Crown is expected to continue cross-examining Patrick.

Legal arguments are expected Monday, and the case is expected to be in the hands of a jury by midweek.