Ontario Review Board
Re: Matthew William Peter Sawyer
Hearing held on: Friday, October 24, 2025
Place of Hearing: Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre
Pursuant to: Section 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code
Before:
Alternate Chairperson: Mr. P. Capelle
Members: Dr. G. Boulais Dr. S. Lessard Mr. P. Hageraats Mr. R. Rainboth
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Matthew William Peter Sawyer Counsel: Ms. M. McMahon
Person in charge of hospital: Representative: Dr. M. Strike
Attorney-General of Ontario: Counsel: Ms. M. Dufort
REASONS FOR DISPOSITION
(Dated December 9, 2025)
Introduction
Mr. Sawyer appeared in Court charged with assault, contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada. Expert psychiatric evidence established that he was suffering from a serious mental disorder at the time of the offence. On June 8, 2020, Mr. Sawyer was found to be not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (“NCR”).
Currently, Mr. Sawyer is subject to a disposition of the Ontario Review Board (“ORB” or “the Board”) dated October 8, 2024, ordering his detention at the Secure Forensic Unit of the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre (“ROMHC” or “the hospital”). Mr. Sawyer was granted privileges, including to live in the community in accommodation approved by the hospital.
Certain conditions were set out. Mr. Sawyer is prohibited from consuming alcohol or other substances, including cannabis.
On October 24, 2025, the Board convened at the hospital to conduct an annual review. Mr. Sawyer attended in person. He was represented by counsel, Ms. Meaghan McMahon.
Mr. Sawyer’s community worker with the Canadian Mental Health Association (“CMHA”), Mr. Tristan MacGregor, also attended.
The Board received direct testimony from the attending psychiatrist, Dr. Melanie Strike. Her updated hospital report, dated September 21, 2025, was filed in evidence.
The issues to be considered by the Board are whether Mr. Sawyer presents a significant risk to the safety of the public, and, if so, to determine the necessary and appropriate disposition.
Positions of the Parties
- The parties presented a joint submission: Mr. Sawyer continues to present a significant threat. Together, they recommended that the current disposition should remain in place, without change. For the reasons set out below, the Board adopted the joint submission.
Current Psychiatric Diagnoses, Hospital Report, p. 78
- Mr. Sawyer is diagnosed with the following:
- Schizophrenia, multiple episodes, in partial remission
- Antisocial personality disorder
- Cocaine use disorder
- Amphetamine use disorder
- Cannabis use disorder
- Alcohol use disorder, in sustained remission
- Opioid use disorder, in sustained remission
- Mr. Sawyer’s regime of prescribed medications includes the following psychiatric medications:
- Aripiprazole depot 400 mg intramuscular every 14 days
- Clozapine 100 mg at noon, 100 mg at supper, 200 mg at bedtime
Index Offence
- The circumstances are described in the hospital report and in last year’s Reasons for Disposition dated October 28, 2024. In summary:
On February 28, 2020, at 9:40 a.m., Cornwall Police Services attended the psychiatric unit of the Cornwall Community Hospital (CCH) for an assault complaint. Police met with the complainant, Mr. Jason Pelletier, who was an inpatient on the unit.
Mr. Pelletier reported that he was assaulted by Mr. Matthew Sawyer, who was also a psychiatric inpatient at the time. Police observed a small contusion of Mr. Pelletier’s left check that was red and swollen.
Investigation revealed that Mr. Sawyer had been medicated at 7:05 a.m. At approximately 7:45 a.m., Mr. Pelletier approached the nursing station to inquire about a day pass. Mr. Sawyer was standing at the nursing station at the time.
As Mr. Pelletier finished speaking with the nurses, he turned his back to walk away from the nursing station. Unprovoked, Mr. Sawyer struck Mr. Pelletier’s left cheek with his fist. Nursing staff immediately intervened to separate the patients.
Mr. Sawyer was arrested at 10:44 a.m. He was read his rights to counsel and a caution; he reported that he understood and did not wish to speak with counsel.
Background History
Mr. Sawyer is 39. He was born in Peterborough, Ontario. His mother reported no problems with her pregnancy or delivery. Mr. Sawyer’s father passed away in 2018 at the age of 54. After Mr. Sawyer’s parents married, he was their only child. The mother has stated that her son was a healthy baby presenting no developmental concerns. He reached his milestones at the expected ages.
At age 15, Mr. Sawyer moved out of his mother’s home to live with his father. By then, the father had remarried. Mr. Sawyer lived with his father’s new family for about a year, then lived with his maternal grandparents for another year.
At age 17, Mr. Sawyer returned to Cornwall to live with his mother, her new partner, and his brother Joshua. Mr. Sawyer has said that he liked living with his mother because she gave him more freedom than his father did.
The mother reported that her son suffered bullying in his youth. In Grade 7, he was involved in a physical fight at school. She explained he did not fight back until he was older. In Grade 10, he was reportedly expelled due to fighting and never returned to school. The mother said her son was living with grandparents at the time, so she does not know all the details.
There is a family history of Schizophrenia with Mr. Sawyer’s sibling.
When he was still much younger, Mr. Sawyer managed well at school. The family would move frequently, which caused him some difficulties at finding and keeping friends. Mr. Sawyer has said he did not like going to school, and that he struggled academically, particularly with reading.
In 2012, it was reported to health care providers at the Brockville Mental Health Centre that Mr. Sawyer had always struggled academically and that, at age 10, he was diagnosed with a learning disability. His disability related to communication and learning abilities.
After leaving school, Mr. Sawyer worked full-time with Ridgewood Furniture. He made cabinets in the factory. About a year later, Mr. Sawyer ended up losing this employment due to physical fights. He said co-workers would pick on him, which forced him to retaliate by fighting.
In younger years, Mr. Sawyer had worked delivering newspapers and at landscaping. At age 18, Mr. Sawyer started to receive social assistance from Ontario Works. He stayed on the program for about two years. In 2006, he was accepted to ODSP. Mr. Sawyer reported he was granted ODSP benefits due to what he termed “mental retardation.”
At times, Mr. Sawyer would supplement his income by selling marijuana.
Criminal Court History
Mr. Sawyer was 20 when first convicted. Twenty-four convictions are recorded between 2006 and 2017. These include several assaults, uttering threats, mischief, failure to comply with probation and failure to comply with recognizance, break and enter, assault causing bodily harm, and two counts of assaulting a peace officer with a weapon.
Mr. Sawyer was sentenced to custodial terms on at least eight occasions. These include three conditional sentences involving forms of house arrest served in the community. The longest actual jail sentence was for twelve months. This was in 2014, following 114 days of pre-sentence custody for charges of assault causing bodily harm, threats, break & enter, and fail to comply with terms of interim release.
Psychiatric History
Mr. Sawyer has had multiple mental health admissions to the Cornwall Community Hospital (“CCH”). In February 2012, following charges of robbery, and other offences including possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, he was diagnosed with Chronic Schizophrenia, Substance Abuse, possible Drug Induced Psychosis, and Impulse Disorder/Anger Management problems.
In December 2013, Mr. Sawyer was admitted to the ROMHC for a fitness assessment following charges of assault causing bodily harm and uttering death threats. The victims were his mother and her partner. Found fit to stand trial, Mr. Sawyer was later convicted and sentenced to a jail term. He finished his sentence in November 2014 at the Brockville Secure Treatment Unit.
In 2016, while serving a sentence at the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre for having assaulted two correctional officers, Mr. Sawyer was transferred from the jail to the Secure Treatment Unit for urgent admission out of concern of violence and accumulated misconducts.
In the Spring of 2019, Mr. Sawyer was admitted to the CCH psychiatric unit in Cornwall; he had been evicted from his apartment and was refusing to go to a group home. That same year saw him admitted to the CCH on six, if not seven, occasions.
In February 2020, Mr. Sawyer was treated at the CCH emergency department for tachycardia, which they suspected was due to drug intoxication. Later discharged, he needed to be readmitted the next day. Following a further hospital discharge on February 12, 2020, he was readmitted the same day after his mother had called 911, alleging he had assaulted her.
Mr. Sawyer has been living at the Wymering Manor supervised group home for the last few years. At Wymering, he continues to use substances.
In April 2024, Mr. Sawyer was admitted to the hospital for about three weeks. This was prompted by his having beat up a male peer in the group home. Following the incident, there was no police involvement.
In May 2024, and into the summer of 2024, Mr. Sawyer’s urine drug screens (“UDS”) tested positive for cocaine and other stimulants, including methamphetamine.
Before last year’s annual review hearing held on September 10, 2024, Mr. Sawyer was showing signs of decompensation, some of which was attributed to his drug use. Dr. Strike testified to the Board that Mr. Sawyer required an admission to the Forensic Assessment Unit for stabilization.
They were also considering admission to the Concurrent Disorders and Substance Abuse Unit. However, Mr. Sawyer was not willing to participate in such programming. He was ambivalent, stating he did not need treatment and that he only needed to get away from people who were offering him drugs.
Before the Board last year, Dr. Strike described Mr. Sawyer as continuing to lack insight into his psychotic symptoms which also consistently got worse when his prescribed dose of Concerta was increased.
Dr. Strike disagreed with Mr. Sawyer’s claim that cannabis helps him handle stress.
When not in hospital, Mr. Sawyer lived at Wymering Manor, where he was still using cannabis and cocaine. He remained incapable to consent to treatment.
Mr. Sawyer nevertheless participated in vocational therapy during the reporting year leading to the Fall of 2024. He volunteered at both the hospital library and the Winter Garden, fulfilling his duties as required. As a book cart volunteer, Mr. Sawyer showed excellent commitment, motivation, attendance, and punctuality.
Recent Course, September 2024 to October 2024
Mr. Sawyer still resides at Wymering Manor. During the current reporting period, he has had no hospital admissions, no criminal charges, and no involvement with police. His Schizophrenia has remained stable, with no episodes of significant destabilization.
Mr. Sawyer is surrounded by others using drugs. At one point this year, a shed on the Wymering property became a cocaine trafficking centre. Things got so bad, the police and Ottawa Community Housing had to come in to deal with the situation.
Despite such surroundings, Dr. Strike notes this is the first of many consecutive years in which Mr. Sawyer has not been admitted to hospital or been involved with police. However, he continues to struggle with substance use.
On most occasions, the treatment team will learn of his substance use after the fact, following UDS testing. When Mr. Sawyer is presented with his positive test results, he will deny having used substances.
In early 2025, several hospital staff members and group home co-residents reported that Mr. Sawyer and his mother were selling crack cocaine to Wymering residents and at another nearby Ottawa Group Home. Mr. Sawyer emphatically denied this. The Ottawa Police investigation saw no charges laid.
Dr. Strike reports that, back in 2022, Mr. Sawyer’s previous Cornwall group home had reported their belief that Mr. Sawyer’s mother was selling crack cocaine to residents. After searching online for the mother’s name under Cornwall, Dr. Strike learned that the mother and Mr. Sawyer’s stepfather had been criminally charged for various incidents over the past ten years with offences involving fraud, illicit substances, and firearms.
Consequently, the treatment team advised Mr. Sawyer that, until further notice, they would not be approving any travel passes with his mother or stepfather. Mr. Sawyer’s mother had been visiting him monthly up to that point. She has not done so since.
Dr. Strike reports that, in the current reporting period, Mr. Sawyer has not followed up on treatment for his obstructive sleep apnea. He continues to sleep excessively and has non-restorative sleep at night, with daytime sleepiness.
Mr. Sawyer has participated in forensic outpatient group programming throughout the year. He has not had much other activity and is encouraged to try other programs. He prefers to keep his commitments to a minimum, due to fatigue and his pattern of sleeping in. However, Mr. Sawyer has kept up good attendance at the Concurrent Disorders group. He also attends for his weekly case management appointments.
Mr. Sawyer has been participating in the hospital Bakeology program, where he can earn some income and acquire skills for possible future employment.
Mr. Sawyer has been eager to obtain paid employment. He believes he would have no difficulty working full-time as a computer programmer. The treatment team urges him to work with their occupational therapist and to focus on volunteer work. Mr. Sawyer has done well with the book cart on inpatient units. At one point, he agreed to do some 3-hour training sessions with the March of Dimes but stopped after finding it took too long.
Mr. Sawyer wants to move to his own apartment. The team encourages him to work with the occupational therapist on instrumental activities of daily living and to attend a cooking group at the hospital. Dr. Strike believes he needs assistance to learn more skills in terms of banking, shopping, meal planning, cooking and for independently taking prescribed medications.
Mr. Sawyer has been transitioning to work with the CMHA worker. He could qualify for a rent subsidy apartment. Currently, none are available. With time and further clinical progress, it is possible Mr. Sawyer could get to the point of being approved for an apartment. Were he to achieve this, he would be assigned to a CMHA worker and have access to counselling for Concurrent Disorders, along with Dialectical Behaviour Therapy.
At present, Mr. Sawyer’s ongoing use of substances does not put him in a position to live at the hospital-linked Grove residence or any similar group home.
If Mr. Sawyer were to reside independently in an apartment, he would need ongoing supervision of his medication and 24-hour supervision for activities of daily living, including meal preparation.
Current Violence Risk Assessment
- Dr. Melanie Strike made recent use of the HCR-20 (v.3) structured clinical judgment instrument. Having regard to the various risk factors including historical, clinical (current or recent) and risk management (future) categories, she is of the opinion that Mr. Sawyer continues to present a high risk of future violence, specifically, assault and related offences.
Evidence at the Hearing
The Board also received direct testimony from Dr. Melanie Strike, Forensic Psychiatrist and Clinical Lead of the ROMHC Forensic Rehabilitation Program. She continues in the role of Mr. Sawyer’s treating psychiatrist and is the author of the hospital report.
Responding to questions posed by Ms. Dufort on behalf of the Attorney-General, Dr. Strike advised as follows:
- Mr. Sawyer is making progress and slowly losing weight. Ozempic is prescribed. His energy is improving.
- Mr. Sawyer’s family support has not continued, given the concerns about the mother’s involvement in possible trafficking activities.
- Dr. Strike responded to questions posed by Ms. McMahon, counsel for the accused patient:
- Mr. Sawyer’s Schizophrenia has been in partial remission since 2023.
- He remains on the same dose of Clozapine and injectable medication.
- Mr. Sawyer’s major improvement in the current reporting year relates to not having had any hospital admissions or physical altercations. Notwithstanding the various positive test results from UDS samples, Mr. Sawyer has managed to achieve periods of sobriety, for up to a month at a time.
- Dr. Strike confirmed that in the current reporting year, Mr. Sawyer has not experienced any decompensation, at least not to the point of uttering threats or acting violently to any person.
- Mr. Sawyer’s participation in groups saw him attend 41 out of 47 assigned concurrent disorders groups.
- When attending programs, Mr. Sawyer can display that he is very “tech-savvy” and is very engaged at absorbing materials provided.
- In terms of occupational therapy, Mr. Sawyer has been reticent to participate in a functional assessment. Dr. Strike explained, he fears failure.
- When Dr. Strike was asked whether she thought Mr. Sawyer would be more open to working on acquiring skills of independent living, she agreed.
- Responding to Board members’ questions:
- Dr. Strike agreed it is significant to see that Mr. Sawyer has now become capable to consent to treatment for his substance use disorder. He is prescribed Contrave, an opioid antagonist for stimulants. Mr. Sawyer has agreed to receive this medication. He has been taking it for the previous two weeks and reports experiencing lowered cravings.
- A panel member noted that Mr. Sawyer appeared drowsy at the hearing. Dr. Strike explained, this is typical for him during the late afternoon (the hearing concluded after 4:30 p.m.). Dr. Strike added that Mr. Sawyer is also shy and embarrassed and is not proud of his substance use.
- The parties presented no further evidence.
Submissions of the Parties
All three parties maintained their joint submission. Dr. Strike took a moment to advise that she wanted Mr. Sawyer to not feel demotivated by his ORB hearing. She commented that Mr. Sawyer is disappointed at not having reached his goal of achieving a conditional discharge. She complimented Mr. Sawyer for the progress he has made this year. She encouraged him to progress further on his goals of achieving reduced substance use and improving his general health.
Counsel for both the Attorney-General and for Mr. Sawyer agreed that Mr. Sawyer’s substance use has reduced without the need for hospitalization. Ms. McMahon commented that Mr. Sawyer has gone to all his Concurrent Disorder sessions. He attends early for his appointments. Now that he is enjoying some cash flow with the Bakeology Program, there is hope it may lead to a greater chance of other paid employment.
Ms. McMahon stressed that Mr. Sawyer’s place of residence continues to be quite challenging for him: Wymering Manor presents serious difficulties with too many co-residents who are using drugs. Some do so, virtually all the time.
Conclusions and Disposition
Based on the evidence, and supported by the appropriate joint submission, the panel had no difficulty concluding independently that Mr. Matthew Sawyer continues to present a significant threat to the safety of the public. The present risk level still requires a formal detention order. This is based on the current diagnosis, and the clinical and behavioural history involving past violence which has arisen, both from - and without - substance use.
In some respects, the hospital and Mr. Sawyer appear to be working well together. This is notwithstanding the very difficult living environment in which Mr. Sawyer finds himself. It is to his credit that he has started to achieve periods of sobriety and, while compliant with medication, to have avoided serious decompensation in his mental health.
Mr. Sawyer’s condition still requires close hospital oversight: the hospital needs to be able to closely observe his mental state, and, if things change, to quickly readmit him. It is also necessary and appropriate that Mr. Sawyer reside only in a hospital-approved residence.
For the immediate future, Mr. Sawyer requires and will benefit further from hospital programs designed to help him acquire the skills he needs to live independently.
The Board noted counsel’s expression of alarm regarding the prevalence of illicit substances at Mr. Sawyer’s group home. We share the same concern. Based on this panel’s independent observation and experience, we will say: the illegal presence of dangerous illicit substances in facilities designed to house forensic patients is a longstanding serious issue.
The Board urges the hospital to take a more pro-active stand on this issue. It is not acceptable to see vulnerable patients with a serious mental illness exposed to illicit mind-altering drugs in circumstances where they and society expect they will be kept safe while undergoing essential treatment in a therapeutic environment.
We commend Mr. Sawyer for his recent progress. We encourage him to continue his efforts and wish him well for the coming twelve months.
The Board thanks Dr. Strike, the treatment team, and both counsel for their assistance.
DATED this 9th day of December 2025, at the City of Toronto, in the Toronto Region.
Mr. P. Hageraats Legal Member
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Office of the Registrar
Ontario Review Board