Natalie C. MacDonald

The accused, who was found unfit to stand trial for murder in 2017 due to treatment-resistant schizophrenia, appeared for an annual Review Board hearing.

The hospital and Crown recommended continued detention with gradually increasing privileges, including indirectly supervised community passes.

The panel accepted the treating psychiatrist's evidence that the accused remains unfit to stand trial and poses a significant threat to public safety.

The panel ordered a continued detention order with the recommended privileges, noting the accused's recent progress and lack of violent episodes over the past year.

The accused was found not criminally responsible for attempted murder and is subject to a detention order.

At his annual review hearing before the Ontario Review Board, the hospital, Crown, and defence jointly submitted that he continues to pose a significant threat to public safety.

The Board accepted the joint submission, noting that while his schizophrenia is in remission and he has made significant progress, he lacks supportive housing in the community and would likely discontinue medication and become psychotic without the structure of a Disposition.

The Board ordered the continuation of his detention order.

The Ontario Review Board conducted an annual review for an accused found not criminally responsible for weapons and threat offences.

The accused has schizophrenia and severe substance use disorder.

The treatment team and Crown recommended a continued Detention Order, noting the accused's intermittent cocaine use and resulting psychiatric deterioration.

The Board found the accused continues to pose a significant threat to public safety.

A Detention Order was maintained, but the Board expanded the accused's travel radius to 200 kilometres to facilitate visits with his girlfriend, provided he maintains abstinence and stability.

The Ontario Review Board conducted an annual review for an accused found not criminally responsible for assaulting police.

The accused, diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder and substance use disorder, had a stable year and was expected to transition to supervised community living.

The Board accepted the joint position of the parties, finding that the accused continues to pose a significant threat to public safety due to his brittle illness and need for supervision.

The Board ordered a continued Detention Order with expanded privileges, including travel within Southern Ontario and indirectly supervised access to the community.

The accused, previously found not criminally responsible for aggravated assault and assault, appeared before the Ontario Review Board for an annual disposition hearing.

The clinical team and all parties jointly submitted that the accused had made excellent progress, remained compliant with treatment, and abstained from substances while residing in supportive housing.

The Board agreed that a conditional discharge was the necessary and appropriate disposition to manage his residual risk while furthering his reintegration into the community.

The Ontario Review Board held an annual review hearing for an accused previously found not criminally responsible for breaches of probation.

The accused, diagnosed with schizophrenia, had made progress in the community but continued to experience residual psychotic symptoms and superficial insight into his illness.

The Board found that the accused remained a significant threat to public safety.

On the joint submission of the parties, the Board ordered the continuation of the Detention Order with amended privileges, including community living and expanded travel passes.

The hospital requested an early hearing to amend the residency condition of the accused's conditional discharge.

The accused, who was previously found not criminally responsible for robbery and other offences, had been accepted into a permanent community group home.

The out-patient psychiatrist testified that the move would not increase the accused's risk to the public.

The Ontario Review Board found that the transition did not pose a significant threat to public safety and granted the amendment to the disposition.

The Ontario Review Board held a mandatory annual review hearing for an accused previously found not criminally responsible for offences including uttering threats and possession of a weapon.

The accused had recently been discharged to transitional housing and demonstrated medication compliance and abstinence from substances.

However, due to his history of rapid decompensation and substance use, the Board found he continued to pose a significant threat to public safety.

The Board ordered the continuation of his Detention Disposition to ensure rigorous oversight and the ability to rapidly return him to the hospital if necessary.

The Ontario Review Board held a hearing to review the restriction of liberties imposed on the accused, a patient at a mental health centre.

The hospital had suspended the accused's privileges and transferred him to a secure unit following medication non-compliance, decompensation, and aggressive behaviour.

The Board found that the initial restrictions and transfer were necessary, appropriate, and the least restrictive options available at the time.

However, the Board concluded that the ongoing restrictions ceased to be necessary and appropriate in the days leading up to the hearing, as the accused had stabilized and returned to baseline.

The Board directed that the accused be transferred back to a general ward and that less restrictive measures be enabled.

The Ontario Review Board held an annual hearing for an accused found not criminally responsible for aggravated assault and weapons offences.

The accused, diagnosed with Schizophrenia, had transitioned to injectable medication and his psychotic symptoms were in remission.

However, relying on uncontroverted psychiatric evidence, the Board found he continued to pose a significant threat to public safety due to residual psychosis and cognitive deficits.

The Board ordered a continued detention disposition at the hospital, with added privileges for travel with an approved person.

The Ontario Review Board held an annual review hearing for an accused found not criminally responsible for sexual assault.

The accused suffers from schizophrenia, mild neurocognitive disorder, and cannabis use disorder.

The Board found that the accused continues to pose a significant threat to public safety.

While all parties agreed to add a community living provision to the detention disposition, the hospital and the accused argued for 'accommodation approved by the person in charge' to maximize flexibility.

The Board rejected this, accepting the attending psychiatrist's evidence that the accused requires the highest levels of supervision.

The Board ordered a detention disposition with community living in supervised accommodation.

The accused, previously found not criminally responsible for dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death, was subject to a discharge with conditions.

Following a dramatic deterioration in his mental status, including new paranoid delusions regarding his wife and family, the hospital requested an early hearing.

The Ontario Review Board found that the accused remains a significant threat to the safety of the public.

The Board ordered a detention order with conditions, concluding it was necessary to allow the treatment team to investigate the precipitating factors, manage his risk in the community, and approve his accommodations.

The Ontario Review Board conducted an annual review of the accused's conditional discharge.

The accused was previously found not criminally responsible for aggravated assault due to treatment-resistant schizophrenia.

Based on a joint submission and uncontroverted expert evidence that the accused struggles with medication adherence and lacks insight into her illness, the Board found she continues to pose a significant threat to public safety.

The Board ordered the continuation of her conditional discharge.

The accused, previously found not criminally responsible for assault and uttering threats, appeared before the Ontario Review Board for an annual review.

The treatment team reported clinical stability but noted the accused's limited insight and need for 24-hour supervised housing to prevent relapse.

Relying on uncontroverted expert evidence and a joint submission, the Board found the accused remains a significant threat to public safety.

The Board ordered the continuation of the Detention Order until suitable supervised housing becomes available.

The Ontario Review Board conducted an annual review of the accused's disposition.

The accused, who was previously found not criminally responsible for serious driving offences resulting in death, suffers from treatment-resistant schizophrenia.

The Board accepted uncontroverted expert evidence that the accused lacks insight, requires supervision for medication adherence, and would pose a significant risk of serious harm if granted an absolute discharge.

The Board concluded the accused remains a significant threat to public safety and ordered the continuation of the existing Detention Order.

The Ontario Review Board conducted an annual review of the disposition for an accused found not criminally responsible for various violent offences.

The accused, diagnosed with schizophrenia and panic disorder, had made significant progress in hospital but remained vulnerable to stress and rapid decompensation.

Relying on uncontroverted expert evidence, the Board found that the accused continues to pose a significant threat to public safety due to limited insight and a history of treatment-resistant illness.

The Board ordered the continuation of the existing Detention Order to ensure a safe and structured transition to complex care housing when available.

The accused, previously found not criminally responsible for multiple violent and weapons-related offences, was subject to an annual review by the Ontario Review Board.

The accused had made significant progress, maintaining stability, medication compliance, and abstinence from substances while transitioning to community living.

The Board applied the Winko test and found that while the accused remains a significant threat to public safety, the risk could be appropriately managed with a Conditional Discharge.

The Board ordered a Conditional Discharge with specific terms, including provisions for immediate return to the hospital if his mental state deteriorates.

The Ontario Review Board conducted an annual review of the disposition for an accused previously found not criminally responsible for sexual assault and theft.

The accused, diagnosed with schizophrenia, polysubstance use disorder, and antisocial personality disorder, was residing in the community under a detention order.

The Board found that the accused lacks insight into his mental illness, the need for treatment, and the gravity of his index offences.

Applying the Winko framework, the Board concluded that the accused continues to pose a significant threat to public safety.

The Board ordered the continuation of the current detention order with discretionary community living privileges.

The Ontario Review Board held an annual review hearing for an accused found not criminally responsible for multiple violent offences.

The accused, who has a moderate intellectual disability and a history of behavioural dysregulation, had been readmitted to a secure forensic unit after setting false fire alarms at a group home.

The Board accepted the unanimous opinion of the clinical team and the joint submission of counsel that the accused continues to pose a significant threat to public safety.

The Board ordered the continuation of the present Detention Order, while encouraging ongoing efforts to find a suitable high-support community placement.

The accused, previously found not criminally responsible for aggravated assault, appeared before the Ontario Review Board for a mandatory review hearing.

The hospital, the accused, and the Attorney General jointly recommended an absolute discharge.

The Board found that the accused had demonstrated sustained clinical stability, remained compliant with treatment for schizophrenia, and no longer posed a significant threat to public safety.

The Board granted an absolute discharge.