Re: Matthew Webster
ORB File No: 8431/8747
Hearing held on: Monday, March 24, 2025
Place of hearing: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health 1001 Queen Street West, Toronto
Pursuant to: Section 672.47(1) and 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code
Before:
Alternate Chairperson: Ms. M. Labrosse Members: Dr. P. Prendergast Dr. L.O. Lightfoot Ms. L. Banks Mr. A. Bouvier
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Matthew Webster Counsel: Ms. J. Boissonneault
The person in charge of hospital: Counsel: Mr. J. McIntyre
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Mr. C. Waite
REASONS FOR DISPOSITION
(Dated May 7, 2025)
Introduction
On November 15, 2023, Matthew Webster was found not criminally responsible (“NCR”) on account of mental disorder on charges of aggravated assault and weapons dangerous, contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada.
Mr. Webster is currently subject to a Disposition of the Ontario Review Board dated April 19, 2024, which orders his detention at the Forensic Service of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto (“CAMH”), hereinafter referred to as the hospital.
On February 6, 2025, Mr. Webster was again found NCR on a charge of arson, contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada. At the time of the finding of NCR the Honourable Court did not make a disposition and referred the matter to the Ontario Review Board (“ORB”) for an initial disposition hearing under s. 672.47(1) of the Criminal Code.
On March 24, 2025, the ORB convened a hearing at CAMH to conduct the annual review of Mr. Webster’s Disposition pursuant to s. 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code and to conduct the initial hearing in relation to the second NCR finding pursuant to s. 672.47(1) of the Criminal Code. Mr. Webster was present at the hearing and represented by counsel, Ms. Jocelyne Boissonneault. The following documents were entered as exhibits for the hearing:
CPIC Report
Agreed Statement of Facts
CV of Dr. S. Chatterjee
Endorsed Information
The Assessment Report dated October 2022
The NCR Report dated February 2024
The Hospital Report dated March 3, 2025
The issues for the hearing are whether Mr. Webster meets the threshold of significant threat to the safety of the public and, if so, to determine the necessary and appropriate Disposition having regard to the factors set out at s. 672.54 of the Criminal Code.
For the reasons set out below the Board finds that Mr. Webster does pose a significant threat to the safety of the public and that a detention order remains the necessary and appropriate Disposition, with the addition of community living in approved accommodation and reporting not less than once per week.
Index Offences
- The details of the NCR finding of November 15, 2023, is extracted from last year’s Reasons for Disposition, as follows:
“The victim is an international student from India currently attending Fleming College in Toronto. On Thursday November 24, 2022, at about 8:30am the victim and his friend were walking eastbound on the south sidewalk of Eglinton Ave W toward Duplex Ave. in Toronto. As they walked, they were followed by the accused a short distance away. The accused and the victim are not known to each other and are complete strangers. As they all walk past the driveway of 53 Division Police Station the accused runs up behind the victim with what appears to be a knife in his right hand and begins to slash and stab the victim in the neck and shoulder area numerous times. The victim begins bleeding profusely and tries to run away. The accused then chases the victim as he runs. The victim trips and falls on the sidewalk and the accused grabs the victim and again stabs the victim numerous times as he pins him to the edge of a low brick wall and continues to stab him in the head and neck area. The accused seeing that the victim is beginning to bleed heavily gets up and walks back westbound on Eglinton Ave W and into the rear parking lot of 53 Division where he turns himself into two uniformed police officers. The accused is placed under arrest, read his rights to counsel and transported to 53 Division where he was charged according and held pending a show cause hearing. The victim was transported to EMS to Toronto General Hospital where he received medical treatment.”
- The details of the index offences in relation to the NCR finding dated February 6, 2025, are extracted from the Hospital Report as follows:
“On April 6, 2021, Mr. Webster was charged with Arson Causing Damage to Property. Mr. Webster had lit a jacket on fire inside the Brampton Queen Street Youth Shelter. The fire spread and engulfed the room, resulting in approximately $50,000 damage to the unit. A few hours after the incident, Mr. Webster was arrested by police inside of a gas station across from the shelter. Mr. Webster’s self-report during this time indicated that he had stopped his prescribed antipsychotic and was using numerous substances, including cannabis, psilocybin, LSD, crack cocaine, cocaine, Xanax, Percocet, and fentanyl. As a result, he experienced auditory hallucinations, low and irritable mood, racing thoughts, and he was much more talkative. His change in behaviour was noticeable to others and his roommate at the shelter asked to change rooms given their concerns about his mental status. Mr. Webster indicated that he had caused the fire in response to command auditory hallucinations. According to the Form 48 Assessment Report authored by Dr. A. Iosif dated October 5, 2022, it was opined from a psychiatric perspective, Mr. Webster was criminally liable regarding his arson charges dating from April 2021. However, a Form 48 Assessment Report authored by Dr. P. Benassi dated February 26, 2024, it was opined from a psychiatric perspective, Mr. Wester was not criminally liable regarding these charges. He was found NCR on February 6, 2025 on one count of Arson Disregard Human Life.”
Background History
The details of Mr. Webster’s personal, legal and psychiatric history are set out in detail in the Hospital Report. Briefly summarized, Mr. Webster is 27 years of age and was born in Etobicoke, Ontario, the only child of his biological parents who were both born and raised in Jamaica.
Mr. Webster had an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) in both elementary and high school, and reportedly often got into fights at school. Though he completed his credits, Mr. Webster did not obtain his high school diploma, as he did not complete the requisite volunteer hours.
His work history includes a number of labour and service industry positions. Prior to his arrest, he was living alone in an apartment in Toronto and was financially supported by the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP).
Mr. Webster does not have a criminal record predating the NCR findings.
In May 2019, Mr. Webster was charged with three counts of sexual assault after allegedly touching the buttocks of three adult females as they came off a public bus. Mr. Webster reported being sexually aroused by the act and having sexual fantasies involving touching women without their consent. He was referred to the Sexual Behaviours Clinic at CAMH. The hospital report indicates that in his Form 48 Assessment in December 2021, Mr. Webster confirmed that he experienced command hallucinations to touch women’s buttocks on occasion but had difficulty discerning if his behaviour was driven by sexual arousal or auditory hallucinations. Mr. Webster was offered Mental Health Diversion for these charges in February 2020.
Mr. Webster’s current diagnoses are:
Schizoaffective Disorder Cannabis Use Disorder Alcohol Use Disorder
Evidence at the Hearing
The hospital's evidence was presented through its report dated March 3, 2025, and through the oral testimony of Dr. S. Chatterjee.
Dr. Chatterjee adopted the contents of the Hospital Report and advised that she has been Mr. Webster’s attending psychiatrist for approximately the last year. Dr. Chatterjee noted that she had omitted to mention in the Hospital Report that Mr. Webster has been volunteering at a community food bank twice per week.
With respect to the most recent NCR finding on a charge of arson, which was made on February 6, 2025, Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that this does not change the recommendations of the hospital for Mr. Webster’s Disposition given that this incident actually pre-dated the aggravated assault incident, which was the basis for the first NCR finding, and the hospital knew about the pending arson charge and has taken it into account in completing its risk assessment of Mr. Webster.
Dr. Chatterjee stated that in her opinion, Mr. Webster meets the threshold for significant threat to the safety of the public because of his major mental illness, schizoaffective disorder and his polysubstance use disorder, which have led him to significant violent offending in the community. Absent oversight from the Board, and given the history of noncompliance with treatment and substance use, Mr. Webster could not be safely managed in the community at this time.
Over the course of the past year Mr. Webster has been compliant with treatment and has abstained from substance use. He is meaningfully engaged in programming for the treatment of his mental health and has demonstrated good insight. According to Dr. Chatterjee, Mr. Webster is well poised to be discharged to community living over the course of the next year if the Board orders the addition of community living to his Disposition, as is being recommended. Mr. Webster has been utilizing indirectly supervised community passes for recreational programming and despite having access to substances, he has remained abstinent.
Dr. Chatterjee believes that it would be premature to grant a conditional discharge given the significant oversight that Mr. Webster requires at this time. Moreover, community discharge should occur to a supportive mental health housing for which the hospital needs to retain authority to approve. In the event of decompensation, Dr. Chatterjee believes that the Mental Health Act would likely be inadequate to effect rapid readmission to hospital.
Mr. Webster is currently on a long-acting injectable antipsychotic as well as an oral antipsychotic medication. The fact that he is on an injection is protective to some extent, but this could depend on the effect of substance use should Mr. Webster relapse into drugs and alcohol. The consumption of substances could make the rate of decompensation quite variable. In the opinion of Dr. Chatterjee, it is most likely that Mr. Webster will be discharged in the coming year should he maintain his current trajectory.
Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that Mr. Webster has an appointment for an assessment with the Sexual Behaviours Clinic which is scheduled for April of 2025 in order to further explore whether his sexual offending in 2019 was a consequence of psychotic decompensation or whether there are any paraphilic tendencies.
In response to questions posed to her by counsel for the Attorney General, Mr. Waite, Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that Mr. Webster has been regularly tested for substance use and that all of his tests have been negative for substances. Should the Board grant the addition of community living to the Disposition, the hospital will start planning for Mr. Webster’s discharge to an all-male mental health supportive type of housing.
With respect to the sexual behaviours testing, Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that there is no phallometric testing available at CAMH at this time. So far, it appears that the sexual offending was part of the manifestation of the major mental illness. Mr. Webster has not demonstrated any problematic behaviours in hospital and his manageability in the community in supportive housing should not be an issue. Regardless of that, Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that the assessment will happen before Mr. Webster’s discharge as there is no likelihood that a placement will be available prior to April of 2025.
In response to questions posed to her by counsel for Mr. Webster, Ms. Boissonneault, Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that she stands by the following statement at p. 16 of the Hospital Report, which reads as follows:
“Overall, if Mr. Webster were to detained on a forensic service with community living in approved accommodations, his risk of future violence, imminent violence, and serious physical harm would be low.”
Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that Mr. Webster has continued to make progress in the last year, that he has responded well to treatment, that he is stable and compliant with his long-acting Abilify and oral lurasidone. The long-acting injectable is protective and it guards against rapid decompensation and potential noncompliance, subject again to the proviso about the impact of substance use on the efficacy of the medication.
Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that Mr. Webster is appropriately availing himself of his indirectly supervised community passes for structured programming and that he volunteers at the Parkwood Food Bank. Despite access to substances while using those passes, he has continued to abstain.
Dr. Chatterjee also confirmed that she stands by the statement in the mental status examination in the report that states: “His insight and judgement into his mental illness, need for ongoing treatment, as well history and impact of substance use were good”.
In response to questions posed to her by members of the panel, Dr. Chatterjee confirmed, that though it appears that Mr. Webster’s sexual behaviours were the product of the schizoaffective illness, the hospital cannot rule out that there is a coercive preference without sexual behaviours testing.
Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that she has seen no evidence of antisociality while Mr. Webster has been receiving appropriate treatment and has been abstinent for substances; however, one cannot ignore his considerable offending history. Should any antisocial traits emerge once Mr. Webster is out of the controlled environment of the hospital, this will need to be addressed by the treatment team. So far, Mr. Webster has demonstrated an engagement that is above the norm, as well as a drive for pro-social activities.
Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that if the community living is included in Mr. Webster’s Disposition there will likely be an occupational therapist assessment, however, the results should not be surprising given that Mr. Webster is quite independent and has the necessary skills to live independently. Though the hospital is targeting mental health supportive housing at this time, it is possible that that might be transitional in nature and that he may get to a point where he can live independently in the community.
Finally, Dr. Chatterjee confirmed that the process of discharge in the community will likely inherently be slowed because of the arson charge which typically makes placement into community living more difficult.
The hospital’s risk assessment is found on page 20 of the Hospital Report as follows:
“Composite Assessment of Risk
Given Mr. Webster’s history of mental illness, previous violence and risk assessment scores, he continues to meet the threshold for significant threat as defined in Section 672.5401 of the Criminal Code.
Re-offence Scenario
In risk assessment, one of the best predictors is a patient’s history of violence. Mr. Webster was found NCR for a violent offence, which occurred in the context of psychotic symptoms.
Mr. Webster has a history of non-compliance with treatment. If he were to become medication non-adherent, use substances, fall away from psychiatric services, and/or experience significant stress, he would likely experience a psychotic decompensation. He may not be forthcoming about his symptoms and may relapse to substance use to cope, further exacerbating his psychotic symptoms He would likely become paranoid, experience command auditory hallucinations to harm others, and misperceive his surroundings leading to violence.”
- No other evidence was presented.
Submissions of Parties
- The Board was presented with a joint submission of all parties that Mr. Webster continues to pose a significant threat to the safety of the public and that a detention order with the addition of community living in approved accommodation and reporting to the person in charge not less than once per week is the necessary and appropriate and least onerous and least restrictive Disposition.
Analysis and Conclusion
Having considered all of the evidence presented at the hearing, and the submissions of the parties, the Board finds that Mr. Webster continues to pose a significant threat to the safety of the public as set out in s. 672.5401 of the Criminal Code of Canada and as further defined by the Supreme Court of Canada in Winko v British Columbia (Forensic Psychiatric Institute), 1999 CanLII 694 (SCC), [1999] 2 S.C.R. 625.
Mr. Webster has been in hospital since his first NCR finding. The Panel at last year’s initial hearing determined that it was premature to add community living given that Mr. Webster had not yet been tested on a general unit and had not demonstrated any ability to abstain from substances in the community.
Since then, Mr. Webster has made consistent progress, meeting all reasonable expectations, including complying with treatment, engaging in his programming and abstaining from substances. Mr. Webster is on a long-acting injectable and oral antipsychotic. He is optimally treated and has maintained stability.
His insight is described as good and his psychiatrist, Dr. Chatterjee, believes that his demonstrated pro-sociality and engagement “above the norm”.
Mr. Webster appears ready to progress to the next stage, namely, to be transferred to a general unit and prepare him for discharge to the community, where his engagement and insight, as well as his commitment to abstain from substances, will be further tested. Substance use remains an active risk factor though Mr. Webster has so far demonstrated the ability to abstain despite having community access.
With respect to the sexual assault charges, it was confirmed that Mr. Webster did complete mental health diversion in 2020 and that the charges were withdrawn. The hospital is moving forward with a referral for assessment by the Sexual Behaviours Unit, which should provide a better understanding of what, if anything, needs to be addressed and treated in that regard.
Having considered the four factors set out in s. 672.54 of the Criminal Code, namely the protection of the public, which is the paramount consideration, the mental condition of the accused, his reintegration into society and his other needs, the Board finds that the detention order with the addition of community living in approved accommodation and reporting to the person in charge or its designate not less than once per week is the necessary and appropriate, and the least onerous and least restrictive Disposition in all of the circumstances.
DATED this 7^th^ day of May, 2025, at the City of Toronto, in the Region of Toronto.
Ms. M. Labrosse Alternate Chairperson
__________________ Office of the Registrar Ontario Review Board