Dr. P. Klassen

The Ontario Review Board conducted an annual review of the disposition for Adam Sean Palmer, a dual status offender who was found not criminally responsible for second-degree murder and later designated a Dangerous Offender following severe institutional violence.

The Board found that the accused remains a significant threat to public safety due to his partially treatment-resistant schizophrenia, antisocial personality disorder, and history of unpredictable, unprovoked violence.

The Board maintained the existing disposition ordering his detention at a high-secure forensic hospital upon the cessation of his penitentiary sentence, and declined to order a placement hearing, finding that his current placement in the federal penitentiary system is necessary to safely manage his acute risk.

The Crown applied to have the young person sentenced as an adult after she pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact to murder, uttering threats, and breaching a detention order.

The young person was 16 years old when she repeatedly lied to police to protect the perpetrators of a brutal murder and dismemberment.

The court found that the Crown failed to rebut the presumption of diminished moral blameworthiness, noting the young person's vulnerability, mental health struggles, and adolescent immaturity at the time of the offence.

The application for an adult sentence was dismissed, and the young person was sentenced to 18 months of secure custody followed by 9 months of supervision, taking into account 19.5 months of pre-sentence custody.

The offender pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual interference contrary to section 151 of the Criminal Code.

The offences spanned approximately nine years and were committed against his biological daughter and step-daughter, with whom he held positions of trust and authority.

The abuse of the biological daughter occurred over an eight-year period between 1997 and 2004, involving progressively intrusive sexual acts including digital penetration, oral-genital contact, and partial vaginal penetration.

The abuse of the step-daughter occurred over a seven-month period in 2007-2008, involving sexual touching and exposure.

The court imposed a sentence of 56 months imprisonment (40 months for the abuse of the biological daughter and 16 months consecutive for the abuse of the step-daughter), along with ancillary orders including a lifetime sex offender information registration order, DNA order, and ten-year weapons prohibition.

The offender pleaded guilty to five counts of sexual misbehaviour involving two child victims and two counts of disobeying court orders.

The Crown sought a dangerous offender (determinate) designation or, alternatively, a long-term offender designation.

The court rejected the dangerous offender application but imposed a long-term offender designation.

The offender received a global custodial sentence of 1,725 days (approximately 4 years 9.5 months) following credit for guilty plea and pre-sentence custody, followed by a 7-year long-term supervision order.

The court considered the offender's prior sexual conviction, the pattern of abuse spanning multiple victims and years, and the psychological harm to the victims in determining sentence.

The Crown appealed the respondent's acquittals on two counts of first-degree murder and convictions for the included offence of infanticide.

The Crown argued that infanticide is not a partial defence to murder, but only an included offence if murder is not proved.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, holding that infanticide operates as both a substantive offence and a partial defence to murder.

The Court also clarified that the mens rea for infanticide is akin to manslaughter, and that the Crown bears the burden of negating the defence of infanticide beyond a reasonable doubt.