The Crown applied to designate the offender as a dangerous offender following a conviction for arson.
The offender has severe cognitive disabilities and a history of trauma, and sets fires as a coping mechanism.
The court found that the offender met the criteria for a dangerous offender designation and imposed an indeterminate sentence.
However, the court also found that Correctional Service Canada (CSC) historically failed to provide the offender with appropriate, tailored mental health treatment, resulting in prolonged periods of segregation.
The court held that serving an indeterminate sentence in a penitentiary without meaningful treatment would extinguish any hope of rehabilitation and parole, constituting an anticipatory breach of the offender's rights against cruel and unusual punishment under s. 12 of the Charter.
As a remedy under s. 24(1) of the Charter, the court ordered CSC to transfer the offender to a provincial psychiatric hospital within 120 days and retained supervisory jurisdiction to monitor compliance.
