Ontario Review Board
Re: Robert Evans
ORB File No: 6491
Hearing held on: Friday, May 23, 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. S. Kert Members: Dr. P. Prendergast Dr. M. Mamak Hon. B. Allen Mr. A. Bouvier
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Robert Evans Counsel: Mr. A. Seymour-Butler
The person in charge of hospital: Counsel: Mr. K. Dow
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Mr. M. Feindel
REASONS FOR DISPOSITION
(Dated July 8, 2025)
Overview
On March 3, 2014, Robert Evans was found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (NCR) on charges of assault with a weapon and aggravated assault. Since the finding of NCR, Mr. Evans has remained subject to dispositions of the Ontario Review Board, most recently a disposition dated July 12, 2024, detaining him at the Secure Unit of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), and allowing for his transfer to a less secure unit at the discretion of the person in charge. That disposition also permits Mr. Evans to exercise privileges extending to living in the community in supervised accommodation approved by the person in charge.
On May 23, 2025, this panel of the Review Board convened an in-person hearing at CAMH to review that disposition. Mr. Evans was present and was represented by his counsel, Mr. Seymour-Butler.
The issues to be decided are whether Mr. Evans continues to pose a significant threat to public safety and, if so, what is the necessary and appropriate disposition, considering the four factors in s. 672.54 of the Criminal Code.
At the conclusion of the hearing, none of the parties contested a finding of significant threat, and the parties jointly submitted that the current detention disposition should be continued, the sole change being to the wording of the place of detention to require that Mr. Evans be detained within the Forensic Service at CAMH.
We agree with the parties and find that the threshold test for significant threat continues to be met, and that the current detention disposition, with a change to the wording as outlined above, is the necessary and appropriate disposition in the circumstances. These are our reasons.
Index Offences
The details of the index offences are set out in the materials provided to the Board. In summary, on Monday, August 15, 2011, at approximately 12:15 a.m., Mr. Evans approached the victim and his friends who were sitting in a park in Toronto. Once he got close enough Mr. Evans struck the victim in the head with a brick. He yelled at the victim that he had spat in his direction. The victim got up and ran. His friends followed Mr. Evans and pointed him out to police when they arrived. This was the first index offence (assault with a weapon).
The police arrested and charged Mr. Evans, and he was held at the Toronto jail pending a bail hearing. Two days later (on August 17, 2017), while he remained in custody, Mr. Evans struck another inmate with a food tray. The force of the blow caused the tray to break and one of the sharp edges cut the inmate above his right eye. The victim received several stitches and was later transported to St. Michael's Hospital where he was advised he had a detached retina. There is information that the victim subsequently had vision problems and could not see out of his right eye as a result of the incident.
Background
At the time of the hearing, Mr. Evans was 45 years of age. He moved out of the family home at 16 and lost touch with his family for many years. At times he lived on the street or in shelters. By the age of 18 he was involved with the criminal justice system, and he was convicted of multiple offences between 1997 and 2016. His record reflects increased violence over the years, including convictions for aggravated assault (involving a stabbing), robbery and assault with a weapon. Many of his offences involved significant violence.
Mr. Evans also has a significant psychiatric history. He began to experience symptoms of psychosis by age 17, which included hearing voices. At times he refused or discontinued medication. Between November 2007 and November 2008, he spent a year on a secure treatment unit at the Brockville Mental Health Centre. The discharge summary from that admission indicates that Mr. Evans had been suffering from paranoid schizophrenia for at least five years (at that point), and severe alcohol and drug problems were noted to have resolved over the preceding year. At the time, Mr. Evans was serving a two-year sentence for assault causing bodily harm contemporaneous with this hospitalization.
After his NCR finding in March 2014, Mr. Evans remained an inpatient at Waypoint until his transfer to CAMH in July 2017. He was detained on a secure forensic unit at CAMH until May 2019, when he was transferred to a general forensic unit.
After Mr. Evans agreed to a trial of clozapine in December 2020, there was a reduction in his auditory hallucinations (including command hallucinations) to the point where he was only experiencing these occasionally and they did not involve any expressions of elopement or harm to himself or others.
By the time of Mr. Evans’ hearing in August 2021, the treatment team was reporting that he had experienced gains in his understanding that he has a major mental illness, and increased insight into his need for medication. Mr. Evans had also developed a good therapeutic alliance with several staff, his thought processes were generally organized and he had gradually advanced through the pass ladder to the point of achieving accompanied passes into the community. At the time Mr. Evans was in contact with his mother and had seen her for the first time in years.
At the end of December 2021, Mr. Evans was accepted into new housing in a 24-hour high support housing program. In January 2022, the inpatient team felt that Mr. Evans was ready for discharge, particularly as he had been participating in programming and utilizing his passes appropriately, up to indirectly supervised in the community. His urine drug screens were also negative.
On February 14, 2022, Mr. Evans was discharged to his new housing. That same evening he failed to return to his supervised residence, and Toronto police were contacted regarding his absence. Ultimately, Mr. Evans was returned by police to the CAMH emergency department on March 29, 2022. On admission he said that he had disliked his new housing, and he admitted to discontinuing medication while he was AWOL.
Upon his return to CAMH, Mr. Evans was detained on a general forensic unit, where he continued to reside until December 2023. The delay in discharge was the result of several incidents of concern: In September 2023, Mr. Evans’ pass level was lowered after he argued with staff, ignored their directions and repeatedly demanded to be taken to the cash office. On December 4, 2023, Mr. Evans was the victim of a Code White incident. Without any provocation, a co-patient who was new to the unit punched Mr. Evans in the head. In response, Mr. Evans pushed the co-patient to the ground and punched him repeatedly. It took multiple individuals to pull Mr. Evans off the co-patient.
Although Mr. Evans denied any plans to retaliate after the incident, on December 10, 2023 a second Code White was called regarding Mr. Evans and the same co-patient. Staff described that while walking to the dining room, Mr. Evans pushed the co-patient down the stairs, got on top of him and started punching him. Several co-patients intervened to break up the fight. During the altercation an elderly patient, who was not involved in the fight, was injured while on the staircase as Mr. Evans pushed him to reach his target. This patient suffered an ankle injury.
In subsequent discussion, the team members’ view was that due to the seriousness of Mr. Evans’ violent actions, his guardedness in disclosing his thought processes, his paranoia and the potential risk he posed to others in his environment, Mr. Evans required an increased level of security to manage his risk of violence. He was transferred to a secure forensic unit on December 11, 2023, and has continued to reside on a secure forensic unit since that time.
Course Since the Last Hearing
At Mr. Evans’ last Review Board hearing in July 2024, his attending psychiatrist, Dr. Jones, reported that Mr. Evans had done well on the secure forensic unit. He was compliant with medication, had progressed up the privilege ladder to level 4 (accompanied community passes) and was in training for level 5 passes. It was Dr. Jones' opinion that Mr. Evans’ improved stability was the result of two things: the staff and programming available to him on the secure unit, and Mr. Evans’ own efforts to make progress. Dr. Jones advised that while it was unlikely that Mr. Evans would be ready to move into the community within 12 months, it was a reasonable possibility that he would be ready to transfer from a secure to a general forensic unit.
At the current hearing we received evidence in the form of an updated hospital report, and the oral testimony of Dr. Jones. That evidence revealed as follows: Over the course of the past reporting year, Mr. Evans remained on a secure forensic unit. At the start of the year he was on level 4 passes, which were approved in May 2024. He was engaged in level 5 pass training and attending therapeutic programming intermittently. Clinically he presented with stable chronic symptoms. He was often seen pacing on the unit and mumbling to himself. Despite his denials of psychotic symptoms, he was frequently noted to be responding to internal stimuli. He was polite and cooperative in any interactions with staff, though frequently guarded and minimally interactive with co-patients.
Given Mr. Evans’ progress, including ongoing compliance with medications, using passes appropriately and engaging in some programming, level 5 passes were approved for Mr. Evans on July 29, 2024. This allowed him to access indirectly supervised passes on hospital grounds for group programs and other rehabilitation activities. While he experienced ongoing chronic psychotic symptoms, Mr. Evans was considered clinically stable and was able to use his level 5 passes, for the most part without incident.
Mr. Evans was also added to the waitlist for transfer to a general unit. In September 2024, level 6 passes were approved which allowed Mr. Evans indirectly supervised passes on hospital grounds for recreation and socialization. Mr. Evans initially used these without issue. However, in early October, while on a community pass, Mr. Evans withdrew $1,000 from the cash office and demanded to purchase a prepaid Visa card. When redirected by staff to his original destination he became argumentative and irritable, and security was required to escort him back to the unit. The incident raised concerns for staff regarding possible impulsivity, financial judgment and AWOL risk.
Though he still had access to indirectly supervised passes to attend rehabilitation programs, Mr. Evans’ level 6 passes were put on hold, as was his transfer to a general unit. At the time staff viewed him as unsuitable for transfer given his episodes of agitation and lack of engagement in programming. Through mid-to-late October, Mr. Evans continued to pace the hallways and was observed mumbling to himself, appearing to respond to internal stimuli. He discussed discharge goals and reported understanding the link between program participation and pass progression. However, while he was largely cooperative with staff and compliant with medication, he engaged in programming only inconsistently. He was granted 30-minute daily indirectly supervised recreation/social passes (with longer indirectly supervised privileges contingent on group attendance), which he began to utilize appropriately.
On November 29, 2024, Mr. Evans was involved in a significant physical altercation with a co-patient, resulting in a Code White and Code Blue being called. Mr. Evans reported that the co-patient had followed him on the unit and grabbed his wrist in a threatening manner. He responded by punching the co-patient repeatedly in the head. After staff and other patients intervened to stop the fight, the co-patient was sent to an emergency room and was diagnosed with a concussion. Mr. Evans later stated that he felt threatened and acted in self-defence. However, security footage revealed that while Mr. Evans initially tried to avoid the conflict, his physical response was excessive and disproportionate. His level 6 passes were again put on hold but his level 5 passes continued. In the weeks that followed he was generally cooperative and expressed remorse but remained guarded and would not discuss the incident in depth. There were some incidents of Mr. Evans being easily angered and unwilling to follow direction.
By March 2025, Mr. Evans began working toward reapplying for his level 6 passes. However, he again displayed some impulsive behaviour, ignored staff directions during a pass and attempted to withdraw a significant amount of money from the cash office while on an indirect pass, stating that he intended to gamble. He failed to follow staff direction to return to the unit and was later escorted back by security. All of his level 5 and level 6 indirectly supervised passes were held for a period thereafter.
In oral testimony, Dr. Jones advised that Mr. Evans’ level 5 passes had been reinstated and that he was continuing to work toward transfer back to a general unit. The barrier at this point is that staff want Mr. Evans to continue to use his level 5 privileges to attend programs on the unit successfully for some further period of time, so that he can progress to utilizing level 6 indirectly supervised passes. Once the team is confident that he is able to use level 6 passes for at least a month, the team will be once again looking at returning Mr. Evans to a general forensic unit.
Dr. Jones advised that the plan for Mr. Evans over the course of the next year is for him to continue the therapeutic work that he is doing, including engaging in various groups and activities. When asked about the continued inclusion of community housing and possible discharge into the community this year, Dr. Jones noted that Mr. Evans had successful used level 6 privileges previously and had even moved to community living, albeit for a very brief period. He noted that the continued inclusion of community living in his disposition is a motivating factor for Mr. Evans, would give him a goal to work towards on a general unit, and would allow his team on a general unit the ability to plan for his further community reintegration.
Analysis and Conclusion
After hearing the evidence and the submissions of counsel (including the joint position) and deliberating, we agree that the threshold test for significant threat continues to be met, and that the necessary and appropriate disposition is the continuation of the current detention disposition, the only change being to detain Mr. Evans at the Forensic Service of CAMH.
Mr. Evans has a long history of schizophrenia, and of discontinuing his prescribed medication and using substances (alcohol, marijuana, crack cocaine), which has contributed to his risk of criminality. During psychotic episodes he presents with hallucinations, paranoia and disorganized behaviour. In the past this has resulted in acts of aggression, notably at the time of the index offences which were the direct result of his mental illness. He also has a criminal history involving serious violence.
Although Mr. Evans has been generally adherent to treatment with clozapine (at a fairly high dose) and aripiprazole, his mental illness has not responded fully to antipsychotic treatment and is still a significant factor causing impairment in his judgment and his exercise of self-control. This was most recently true in November 2024, when he was involved in a physical altercation with a co-patient, causing serious harm to the other individual. While he has not experienced active symptoms of psychosis during the past year, this has been the result of Mr. Evans continuing to reside in a structured environment with significant oversight from staff. Absent appropriate support, structure and supervision, he is likely to again become non-adherent with treatment (as occurred during his AWOL in 2022) and use substances. This would likely lead to a re-emergence of his psychotic symptoms and, as a result, would significantly increase his risk of violence to others.
We also agree that the current detention disposition is appropriate to manage the risk posed by Mr. Evans. Over the review period there has been some improvement in his clinical condition. His compliance with medication has prevented significant psychotic disturbances and he has remained abstinent from substances of abuse. This has allowed him to engage more meaningfully in his psychosocial rehabilitation plan and to exercise a greater level of privileges. However, Mr. Evans still requires close monitoring by mental health professionals for any signs and symptoms of decompensation of his mental health and to ensure adherence to treatment. The clinical team also requires the ability to approve any housing in which Mr. Evans may reside as he progresses towards further community reintegration.
Considering public safety, which is paramount, as well as Mr. Evans’ mental condition, his reintegration into the community and his other needs, we agree with the parties that the current detention disposition with a change to detain him on the Forensic Service, is necessary and appropriate in the circumstances.
We share the hope of the treatment team that, assuming Mr. Evans is able to utilize greater levels of privileges without incident, he will be in a position to transfer back to a general forensic unit over the course of the coming year. While community living may not be imminent or even likely over the next 12 months, we agree that the community living privilege should continue in the new disposition. Finding supervised accommodation is a difficult process and the waitlists are lengthy. Mr. Evans should be able to be placed on a waitlist for appropriate housing once his treatment team views this as potentially in the offing (See Kelly, 2014 ONCA 269 at para. 11). Moreover, Mr. Evans has in the past been motivated to progress to community living, and this remains a source of motivation for him. Finally, the change to detention on the Forensic Service allows Mr. Evans to be transferred to a general unit as soon as he is ready to do so and accords with the current general practice at CAMH. It is also in keeping with the requirement that the disposition be the least onerous and least restrictive in the circumstances.
Accordingly, considering public safety (which is paramount), as well as Mr. Evans’ mental condition, his reintegration into the community and his other needs, we find that the current detention disposition should continue, the only change being to order his detention on the Forensic Service at CAMH.
DATED this 8^th^ day of July, 2025, at the City of Toronto, in the Region of Toronto.
Ms. S. Kert Alternate Chairperson
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Office of the Registrar Ontario Review Board