Peter Prendergast

The Ontario Review Board conducted a mandatory annual review of the accused's disposition following a finding of not criminally responsible for assault with a weapon and other offences.

The hospital and the accused's counsel jointly recommended an absolute discharge, supported by expert psychiatric evidence that the accused was fully compliant with treatment, abstinent from alcohol, and no longer posed a significant threat to public safety.

Applying the Supreme Court's framework in Winko, the Board accepted the unanimous clinical recommendation and granted the accused an absolute discharge.