Ontario Review Board
Re: Christopher Thomas
ORB File No: 4053
Hearing held on: Friday, February 21, 2025
Place of hearing: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health 1001 Queen Street West, Toronto
Pursuant to: Section 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code
Before:
Alternate Chairperson: Mr. M.D. Segal Members: Dr. B. Bordoff Dr. J. Kis Hon. B. Allen Mr. J. Cyr
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Christopher Thomas Counsel: Mr. A. Pollard
The person in charge of hospital: Counsel: Ms. M. Warner
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Ms. V. Culp
REASONS FOR DISPOSITION
(Dated April 14, 2025)
Introduction
On October 15, 2024, Christopher Thomas, age 47, was found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder on the charge of indecent act under the Criminal Code.
On February 21, 2025, Mr. Thomas, who is the subject of a Conditional Discharge with community living privileges, attended his annual review at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health before the Ontario Review Board (the “Board”).
The Board had before it as Exhibit 1, the Hospital Report dated December 10, 2024.
In preliminary positions, all the parties took the same position that the current Conditional Discharge was appropriate and necessary. By the conclusion of the hearing, the Board agreed.
Mr. Thomas’ history is well reviewed at paragraphs 5 to 15 of last year’s Reasons which indicate as follows:
“Mr. Thomas’s personal history is set out in the hospital report, filed. It is unnecessary to set it out in detail. He is presently 46 years old, single, and residing at LOFT transitional housing. He has a daughter. He is unemployed and is supported by the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP). He is incapable with respect to property and his finances. He is incapable with respect to psychiatric treatment and his father acts as his Substitute Decision Maker (SDM). He had some involvement in the criminal justice system as well as the mental health system prior to the index offence.
Accounts of Mr. Thomas’ upbringing are inconsistent. It appears that he was raised by his mother in Jamaica until the age of eight when she moved to the United States. He was then raised by his maternal grandmother until the age of thirteen when he moved to Chicago to be with his mother. He seems to have had little contact with his father. He was reported to be “slow” and be in difficulties as a child, being truant, defiant and in trouble at school. Mr. Thomas’ report was markedly different and positive.
When he moved to Chicago, his mother indicated that he manifested significant academic and behavioural problems during the three years that he lived with her. She reported that he was truant, had poor grades, abused alcohol and drugs. Mr. Thomas’ account was, again, different and positive.
Mr. Thomas moved to Toronto to live with his father at the age of 15 or 16. Mr. Thomas’ father reported that he attended Grade 9 when living in Toronto but continued to have significant conduct problems. He was reportedly dealing cocaine and was caught in possession of cocaine on several occasions, by his father. He was asked to leave his father’s home in 1996, at the age of 19, because of ongoing involvement with drugs (hospital report, page 9).
Mr. Thomas reported his father sent for him because “he wanted to know [Mr. Thomas]”. Mr. Thomas reported that he was drinking one beer per day and was smoking one joint of marijuana per day, while living with his father. He indicated that he was “making good money” selling cocaine, which he “thought was fun”. He was arrested for possession of cocaine at age 15 and spent two months in custody, which he described as “crazy and fun”. Mr. Thomas was asked to leave his father’s house because he was not listening to his father.
Mr. Thomas’ father reported that, after Mr. Thomas left his house in 1996, he was in and out of jail on drug trafficking charges between 1996 and 1999. Mr. Thomas went to Jamaica in April 2001 to avoid outstanding charges against him. He was sent back to Toronto later that year secondary to aggressive behaviour toward his uncle and grandmother. After returning to Toronto, Mr. Thomas’ father reported that his son lived mainly on the street. His father saw him on several occasions and remarked that Mr. Thomas had poor hygiene and was often found to have lost most of his clothes. Residency information is inconsistent, but he appears to have been living in a shelter at the time of his arrest.
Mr. Thomas had little legitimate employment history.
Mr. Thomas had been involved with the mental health system. He first saw a psychiatrist at the age of 15, at the suggestion of his father. He could not recall details of this meeting and reported that the psychiatrist told him “Everything is okay”. His next contact with psychiatric care was during an admission to the Toronto East General Hospital in 2000. Police brought him to hospital, after having been found walking naked on the street and acting bizarrely. His symptoms at that time included paranoia, delusions of thought control, auditory hallucinations, and disorganized behaviour.
He was diagnosed with schizophrenia. He was treated but indicated that he planned to discontinue medication treatment after discharge. He refused a referral for psychiatric follow-up. Mr. Thomas was subsequently readmitted to the Toronto East General Hospital, secondary to a decompensation in his mental status related to discontinuation of antipsychotic medication. Medication was restarted in hospital, and Mr. Thomas was again stabilized and discharged with no plans for psychiatric follow-up.
Mr. Thomas has a significant history of polysubstance abuse, beginning in his mid-adolescence. He has never engaged in alcohol rehabilitation. He reported using marijuana daily since the age of 14. He reported a history of selling marijuana. He believed marijuana made him “wise”. Mr. Thomas endorsed selling cocaine, at different periods in his life, beginning at the age of 14 or 15. He denied ever using cocaine. Upon admission to Queen Street CAMH, Mr. Thomas endorsed a history of using other street drugs including heroin, LSD, MDMA and PCP.
Mr. Thomas’ criminal antecedents are set out at pages 7 and 8 of the hospital report, and include numerous drug offences, as well as offences against the administration of justice.”
Evidence at Hearing
Dr. A. Ali, Mr. Thomas’ psychiatrist, testified. There were no updates to the hospital report.. Last March, Mr. Thomas moved into high support housing run by VITA. There are only three residents there. It is not permanent housing. An application has been made for permanent housing. There is no information as to when there may be an answer.
In the doctor’s view, Mr. Thomas' needs and the risk to the community are well managed under the current Disposition.
Mr. Thomas’ mental status is the same as previous years. He has negative symptoms of schizoprhrenia but no overt positive symptoms. The patient’s insight is limited.
Mr. Thomas has profound vision challenges and requires assistance to navigate. Vision challenges arose some years ago following a stroke. For a long time, Mr. Thomas declined to follow up on vision care. He did visit an eye doctor last week, but the hospital has not yet heard back on the results. The hospital surmises that the vision impairment is permanent, serious, and not likely to improve. Prior to the hearing, Dr. Ali asked Mr. Thomas if he was able to see her. There was a time when Mr. Thomas could see outlines or shadows, but this is no longer the case.
Mr. Thomas’ current home is set up to assist with vision challenges. For example, staff assist Mr. Thomas when he needs to go out for a smoke.
The plan is to transfer Mr. Thomas to a community psychiatric team. Because there is no current sense of when permanent housing may be available, it is premature to transfer care to the community or asking his family doctor to begin administering injections. Once the location of his move is known, those supports will be accessed.
As well, following the acquisition of permanent housing and some period of stability, consideration of an Absolute Discharge may proceed.
While there has been no sexual impropriety or violence or aggression for some years, Dr. Ali opined that if granting an Absolute Discharge today, Mr. Thomas would likely fall away from treatment and medication, become psychotic, and engage in inappropriate sexualized behaviours such as disrobing in public as he did in the index offence.
Mr. Thomas is taking care of himself better at his current housing. He is coming out of his room and engaging more. The patient is well supported now.
Analysis
- Mr. Thomas is doing well at his high support temporary housing. The hospital is actively looking for permanent supportive housing. Mr. Thomas does well with a great deal of support. As soon as permanent housing is found, steps will be taken to transfer Mr. Thomas’mental health care to the community and move toward an Absolute Discharge. An Absolute Discharge at this stage will result in Mr. Thomas falling away from care and engaging in psychologically harmful conduct. The hospital is keen to secure permanent housing and is taking steps in that direction. We wish Mr. Thomas well in the upcoming year.
DATED this 14^th^ day of April, 2025, at the City of Toronto, in the Region of Toronto.
Mr. M.D. Segal Alternate Chairperson
Office of the Registrar Ontario Review Board