Ontario Review Board
Re: Antonio Galloro
ORB File No: 8446
Hearing held on: Tuesday, April 8, 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: Ms. C. Fromstein
Members: Dr. L.E. Cappe Ms. C. Young Hon. C. Nelson Ms. B. Naegele
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Antonio Galloro Counsel: Mr. J. Kopman
The Person in charge of Hospital: Counsel: Ms. M. Warner
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Mr. M. Feindel
REASONS FOR DISPOSITION
(Dated June 2, 2025)
Introduction
On December 13, 2023, Mr. Antonio Galloro was found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (“NCR”) on a charge second-degree murder, contrary to the Criminal Code. He is currently subject to his initial disposition of the Ontario Review Board dated May 1, 2024, detaining him at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (“CAMH”) Forensic Service with the conditions up to living in the Greater Toronto Area in approved accommodation.
On April 8, 2025, the Board convened a hearing at CAMH to review that Disposition pursuant to s. 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code. Mr. Galloro attended his hearing and was represented by counsel, Mr. J. Kopman. Also present at the hearing was Mr. E. Battiston, on behalf of Mr. Galloro’s sisters, who filed a Victim Impact Statement. Mr. Galloro’s sisters were not in attendance. Ms. Warner represented the hospital; Mr. Feindel, the Crown.
The issues to be determined are whether Mr. Galloro is a significant threat to the safety of the public, and if so, the necessary and appropriate Disposition to manage that risk having regard to the criteria set out in s. 672.54 of the Criminal Code.
Initial Positions
At the commencement of the hearing, the parties were canvassed as to their preliminary without prejudice recommendations to the Board. Counsel for the Hospital recommended that Mr. Galloro be found to pose a significant threat to the safety of the public and that he be subject to a detention Disposition with privileges up to and including community living in approved accommodation. Counsel for the hospital also wanted the Board to apply a parameter restriction for the sisters and left its wording up to the Board. Counsel for the Crown supported the hospital as to the issue of significant threat, and the proposed terms of a detention disposition. The Crown also supported a parameter restriction with respect to the residence, places of worship, employment and schools for the sisters and their families. Mr. Kopman submitted that he agreed with the issue of significant threat and a detention order, but would like to make further submissions on the parameter issue. Finally, all counsel agreed that there should be a no-contact order between Mr. Galloro and his two sisters.
For the reasons set out below, this panel of the Board is of the view that the threshold for significant threat is met, and that the necessary and appropriate Disposition is that Mr. Galloro be detained at the Forensic Service of CAMH subject to a number of conditions and restrictions on his liberty, as well as privileges, the most liberal of which is that he be permitted to live in the community in accommodation approved by the person in charge. The Board also orders that Mr. Galloro should not attend within a distance of 200 meters of his sisters’ residences.
Index Offence
- The circumstances of the index offence are taken from the Synopsis for a Plea, as follows:
“On October 30, 2021 at around 9:59 PM, Mr. Galloro and the victim (his mother) were at home, where they resided with Mr. Galloro’s young son. Mr. Galloro was in the basement of the home with his son, where they usually spent their time. Sometime between 6:00 and 9:00 PM, Mr. Galloro began writing things furiously and talking about people and the TV listening to them. He then went upstairs and woke the victim. They spoke in Italian, and Mr. Galloro’s son was called upstairs to the living room. Mr. Galloro told him that his grandmother, the victim, was the devil. He was talking about God and Mary, and started hugging both of them, then allegedly began choking the victim. He used both hands to choke the victim while she was sitting on a sofa chair in the living room. His son ran downstairs, attempting to call police, when Mr. Galloro allegedly yelled out, “bring me a big knife so I can kill myself. Get the biggest knife you can find, I'm doing this for you.” The child fled the home to a neighbor, where they called 911. Officers arrived on scene and located Mr. Galloro. He was arrested and read his rights to counsel and transported to 31 Division. Officers then entered the home, where they located the victim inside the living room, suffering from obvious facial injuries, and without vital signs. Life saving measures commenced, but were unsuccessful. The victim was pronounced deceased on scene.”
Background
Mr. Galloro’s personal history and background are set out in great detail in the Hospital Report dated March 29, 2024 and need not be repeated here except to highlight relevant points for context. Mr. Galloro was born in Toronto on April 30, 1978 and, at the time of the hearing, was 46 years of age. His parents were born in Italy and came to Canada for a better life. He is the middle child in a sib-line of three; he has an older sister and a younger sister who do not currently maintain a relationship with him, as a consequence of the index offence.
Mr. Galloro reports having had a difficult childhood wherein he was subjected to physical and emotional abuse by his parents. He described not having much of a relationship with his father due to how much his father worked and said that they would “butt heads” a lot. His father passed away from cancer when Mr. Galloro was 39. Mr. Galloro’s relationship with his mother was fraught with conflict; he described her as being very tough on him, physically and emotionally. Beatings included his being hit with objects and he was often belittled. He felt his parents’ expectations of him were too high and that they never thought he was “good enough”. Despite these difficulties, Mr. Galloro reported loving his mother dearly and being grateful for the support and assistance she provided him over the years, including into adulthood.
Mr. Galloro found school difficult because he had a learning disability. He was bullied for being “skinny and cross-eyed”. He worked while attending school to help support the family. He completed high school a little later than his peers, due to his having failed some courses and having to retake them at night school.
Mr. Galloro has a positive work history. He started working with his father at a young age, painting homes and then held a number of part-time jobs while in high school, eventually leading to his finding full-time employment with a major bank where he worked his way up to the position of branch manager over a period of 16 years. He was recruited to work for another bank but was laid off after a period of three years, following which he held a number of positions in the banking, insurance and construction sectors but ultimately found himself out of work, reportedly due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. He has not worked since 2020.
Mr. Galloro married when he was 31 years of age. From Mr. Galloro’s perspective, the marriage was not a happy one; he felt he had been taken advantage of emotionally and financially. He and his wife separated after four years of marriage. Following separation, his wife fought for custody of their son, but seemingly dropped the claim after Mr. Galloro was laid off from his second banking position. Mr. Galloro’s son stayed in his care, and the child’s mother reportedly had little involvement in his life. Following the index offence, the child went to live with his mother; Mr. Galloro and she have since reconnected. He describes their relationship now as “cordial” and credits her for being instrumental in facilitating visits and virtual contact between himself and his son.
The Hospital Report indicates that, prior to the index offence, Mr. Galloro had no criminal record or previous involvement with the police. However, in the Hospital Report, Mr. Galloro refers to his having once been falsely accused of assaulting his wife, “though the charges were dropped”.
In terms of his psychiatric history, Mr. Galloro suffered from anxiety and depression, which first prompted him to seek treatment when his marriage began to fail. He saw his family doctor, who prescribed venlafaxine XR 150 mg daily, following which the panic attacks and depressive symptoms he had been experiencing resolved. In January of 2019, he presented at his family doctor with a recurrence of anxiety, and reported having stopped the venlafaxine more than a year before because he could not afford it. He was prescribed venlafaxine 75 mg daily but the following day, he reportedly called 911 because of a panic attack and was assessed at home by emergency medical services. The following day, he attended an ER for another panic attack, and was treated with lorazepam. On April 8, 2019, feeling that his anxiety was inadequately managed, he requested an increase in the dose of his medication to 150 mg daily. He remained on this dose until shortly before the index offence. He had never seen a psychiatrist prior to his incarceration following the index offence. He had no history of having been admitted to a psychiatric facility. He denied experiencing psychotic symptoms in the past.
As for his substance abuse history, Mr. Galloro first tried alcohol at 18 years of age; he denies consuming alcohol regularly or excessively. He first tried cannabis in high school but said he did not like it. He started using cannabis regularly in his late 30’s, believing that it helped him to relax, calm down and concentrate. He smoked about 1 gram of cannabis daily from the age of 39 until the date of his arrest. He initially denied using other substances proximal to the time of the index offence, but later conceded that he could have used mushrooms (psilocybin) the day prior to the index offence. More generally, he stated he had used mushrooms a few times in his life but felt that it [psilocybin] had not done much for him. He denied using or experimenting with other substances, save cigarettes and the occasional “energy drink” before the gym. Notably, he quit smoking cigarettes when he was 39, and started using cannabis as it helped him when he was trying to quit. Finally, within the month prior to the index offence, he was prescribed Tylenol 3 [with codeine] by his dentist for tooth pain. He reported not noticing any changes to his mental state related to the use of Tylenol 3 and denied using more than prescribed.
Following Mr. Galloro’s arrest on October 30, 2021, he was held in custody at the Toronto South Detention Centre until being admitted to CAMH on January 12, 2024. Since that time, he has been an inpatient on the Forensic Assessment and Triage Unit (FATU). The Hospital Report describes him as having had a positive trajectory in hospital thus far. His mental status has remained stable; he has been compliant with his medication regimen and cooperative with members of his treatment team. He has not posed any behavioural problems on the unit and there have been no issues with violence or aggression. He has, however, been assaulted several times but did not retaliate and sought help appropriately.
Mr. Galloro’s current diagnoses are listed on p. 1 of the Hospital Report as Major Depressive Disorder, Acute Hyperactive Delirium/Venlafaxine Withdrawal (Now Resolved) and Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Currently, Mr. Galloro’s Major Depressive Disorder is in remission (Hospital Report, p. 24). Since his admission to CAMH, Mr. Galloro’s mental status has been stable. Due to Mr. Galloro’s use of cannabis and the possibility that he used psilocybin the day before the index offence, a diagnosis of substance-induced psychosis remains a differential diagnosis (Hospital Report, p. 25).
Evidence at the Hearing
The Board heard evidence from Dr. K. Valoo, a psychiatrist, who has been treating Mr. Galloro since July, 2024 when he was transferred to a general forensic unit. In addition, the Board relied on the evidence contained in the Hospital Report dated March 10, 2025. It was made an exhibit along with a Victim Impact Statement from Mr. Galloro’s two sisters.
Mr. Galloro was transferred to a general forensic unit in May, 2024. Dr. Valoo stated that there were two updates to the Hospital Report. On the weekend before this hearing, Mr. Galloro had a successful visit with his son at a coffee shop. The second update was to note that Mr. Galloro’s individual therapy was paused in order to find a new clinician for him. His therapy will continue as soon as that happens.
Mr. Galloro is at pass level 8 and has been at this level since November 2024. This level gives him the privilege of entering the community for recreational and social purposes. While the highest level of pass privilege can go to level 9, this level is reserved for the purpose of overnight visits for transitional housing purposes. It is not yet needed for Mr. Galloro. His level 8 passes are being exercised appropriately and going well. No concerns were raised.
Looking to the future will include finding transitional supportive housing in the community. Secondly, another focus will be assisting Mr. Galloro in finding employment.
As far as housing is concerned, Mr. Galloro’s expected transitional housing would be time-limited – about one to two years before more permanent housing is located. This transitional housing is to ensure that Mr. Galloro has ongoing psychiatric assistance. It also enables the team to monitor his stability.
Dr. Valoo testified that a detention order is still necessary as the hospital must continue to approve housing choices and provide oversight. In addition, Dr. Valoo stated that the hospital must be able to act quickly in the event of any future decompensation. She reminded the Board that Mr. Galloro’s index offence was the result of very unpredictable behaviour that came on suddenly.
Mr. Galloro has had a good year. The only problems that he had were some interpersonal conflicts with staff over his expectations. He felt, at times, that his needs and expectations were not being met. After writing numerous emails about these issues, Mr. Galloro eventually apologized for his behaviour. There were no signs of aggression. The hospital team, on its part, is always trying its best to remain adaptive to his needs. Dr. Valoo stated that Mr. Galloro’s insight into his illness is strong. He knows what he has to do.
In answer to questions from the Crown, Dr. Valoo stated that the team is attempting to assess risk and has adopted a working diagnosis of narcissistic personality traits. These traits emerged over the last year. The working diagnosis will be useful and informative with respect to Mr. Galloro’s depression and lack of self-confidence. It aligns with the brittleness of his mental state. The team thinks that the working diagnosis might explain the incidence of the emails. Dr. Valoo stated that the emails did not raise any concerns of psychosis.
The Crown also explored possible involvement of the Children's Aid Society. While the Society was involved with the family a few years prior to the index offences, there is no Children's Aid involvement now.
In questioning Dr. Valoo about a distance parameter, she pointed out that she has no doubt about the sincerity of Mr. Galloro’s understanding and acceptance about why his sisters do not wish to have anything to do with him.
In answer to questions from Mr. Kopman, Dr. Valoo indicated that it is not yet necessary for the hospital to consider the appointment of an approved person (possibly, Mr. Galloro’s ex-wife) as an approved person is not essential for overnight visit purposes.
In further questioning by Mr. Kopman, Dr. Valoo stated that the location of transitional housing is likely to be close to the hospital or in the downtown area. It is likely that Mr. Galloro might be transferred to transitional housing in the coming year but Dr. Valoo could not be sure of this. Also, permanent housing is likely to be outside the downtown area. Finally, Dr. Valoo reiterated that, although some of Mr. Galloro’s emails were inappropriate, they did not indicate any violent tendencies nor extreme behavioural issues. Mr. Galloro has been cooperative and collaborative with the team and staff. The concern about Mr. Galloro is how he will react to stressors. The working diagnosis of narcissistic personality traits is informative in dealing with the issue. The team has no concerns about medication adherence and there are no present plans to change Mr. Galloro’s medication.
In answer to a question from a panel member, Dr. Valoo said that some transitional housing is supervised 24/7 and some not. Mr. Galloro would be evaluated by the team once a vacancy arises. He has not expressed any reservations. Mr. Galloro would be followed by a FORCAT (Forensic Consultation and Assessment Team) team. Dr. Valoo also stated that Mr. Galloro’s insight into his illness is strong.
In answer to a panel member’s questions, Dr. Valoo pointed out that Mr. Galloro is very motivated to find employment, including the exploration of further educational opportunities.
Victim Statement
Mr. E. Battiston appeared for the victim sisters (Caterina Salt and Vittoria Tersigni, and Vincenza Galloro (mother)). He read the Victim Impact Statement on the Record.
The most important aspect of the Victim Impact Statement is that both sisters made it clear that they and their families wanted no contact with Mr. Galloro, either directly or indirectly. They also wish to be kept informed of any future decisions and hearing dates.
Mr. Battiston also told the Board that he had a printed list of the addresses of all family members (including schools and places of employment) that he wished to make part of the evidentiary record. The list, however, was not filed.
No further evidence was called.
Final Submissions
The hospital submission was that last year’s Disposition of a detention order should continue. While Mr. Galloro’s transfer to a general unit this year was successful a detention order remains necessary and appropriate to manage his risk. He must have his housing approved and learn to manage his stress. As for fashioning a distance parameter condition, the hospital proposed that the Board fashion the appropriate condition. The hospital also submitted that the parameter condition be flexible so as not to unduly restrict reintegrative possibilities.
The Crown supported the hospital with respect to the request for a detention order and submitted that the parameter condition should apply to residences, schools, employment locations and places of worship. Mr. Feindel suggested that this information be provided to the hospital. He also submitted that a 100 meter distance would be appropriate.
Mr. Kopman agreed with the hospital and the Crown on the issue of significant threat to the safety of the public and agreed with a detention order. Mr. Kopman, however, urged the Board not to make a distance parameter condition so extensive that it would interfere with Mr. Galloro’s housing.
Conclusion
Having heard and considered all of the evidence as well as submissions from the parties, the Board agrees with the joint submission that Mr. Galloro poses a significant threat to the safety of the public. However, quite apart from the joint position of the parties on this issue, the Board has no difficulty coming to an independent conclusion to the same effect.
Mr. Galloro’s risk flows from his diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder, which as the Hospital report describes, has caused him to experience recurrent depressive episodes, often in the context of psychosocial stressors. He remained stable on the antidepressant venlafaxine until days prior to the Index Offence, when his dose of venlafaxine was precipitously reduced. This resulted in withdrawal symptoms, including anxiety, electrical shock sensations and headaches and acute hyperactive delirium, which is a neurocognitive disorder characterized by an acute disturbance of attention accompanied by a change in cognition, which can include perceptual disturbances such as misinterpretations, delusions or hallucinations. In addition, on the day prior to the offence, Mr. Galloro used cannabis and may have used psilocybin.
These factors, combined, led Mr. Galloro to become, in the moments before the Index Offence, abruptly religiously preoccupied, psychotic, violent and suicidal. The Index Offence was serious, criminal and violent, leading as it did, to the death of his mother and psychological harm to his son. The Board adopts in their entirety and relies upon the risk assessments and formulations set out in the Hospital Report at pp 20-24 of the Hospital Report. On the record before it, there is no doubt that Mr. Galloro poses a significant threat to the safety of the public, and the Board so finds.
Thus, the Board finds that the evidence overwhelmingly supports the recommendations of the Hospital, and the Crown, supported by counsel for Mr. Galloro, being detention in the Forensic Service of CAMH, accompanied by privileges set out in the Hospital Report.
The Board also finds that a parameter condition is appropriate given the evidence and the statements made by Ms. Salt and Ms. Tersigni in their Victim Impact Statement. The Board finds that a condition limiting Mr. Galloro from attending within 200 meters of his sisters’ residences is necessary and appropriate. The Board considered a broader restriction with respect to residences, places of employment, schools and places of worship for other family members but felt that a broader condition might unduly restrict community housing necessary for Mr. Galloro’s reintegration into society. A broad condition would offend the concept of the condition being the least onerous and restrictive disposition the Board could make.
Mr. Galloro has had a good year. He has successfully transferred to a general forensic unit and is being considered for transitional housing in the community. He is stable, compliant with medications and takes advantage of many therapeutic programs offered to him and has ongoing insight into his illness. The Board wishes him well.
In coming to this determination, the Board has considered the criteria set out in s. 672.54 of the Criminal Code, the paramount consideration being the safety of the public, the mental condition of Mr. Galloro, his reintegration into society and his other needs.
DATED this 2nd day of June, 2025, at the City of Toronto, in the Toronto Region.
Hon. C. Nelson
Legal Member
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Office of the Registrar
Ontario Review Board