Ontario Review Board
Re: Matthew Curran
ORB File No: 8122
Hearing held on: Thursday, December 11, 2025
Place of hearing: Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care 401 Sunset Drive, St. Thomas
Pursuant to: Section 672.81(2.1) of the Criminal Code
Before:
Alternate Chairperson: Mr. J. Weinstein
Members: Dr. L.O. Lightfoot Dr. R. Kunjukrishnan Ms. C. Murray Ms. C. Plyley
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Matthew Curran Counsel: Mr. F. Retar (via Zoom)
The person in charge of hospital: Counsel: Ms. J. Zamprogna
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Mr. D. Rows
REASONS FOR DECISION
(Dated January 13, 2026)
Introduction:
On July 25, 2022, Mr. Matthew Curran was found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder, on charges of utter a threat to cause death or bodily harm (x2), use firearm while committing an indictable offence, possession of prohibited or restricted firearm with ammunition, and assault with a weapon (x3), all contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada (“Criminal Code”).
Mr. Curran is subject to a Disposition of the Ontario Review Board (the “Board”), dated October 10, 2025, which ordered that he be detained at the Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care, St. Joseph's Health Care London (“Southwest”). This Disposition provides Mr. Curran with various privileges, including to live in the community, in accommodation approved by the person in charge.
Pursuant to s. 672.56(2) of the Criminal Code, Southwest notified the Board, by letter dated October 6, 2025, that Mr. Curran’s liberty had been restricted: on September 23, 2025, Mr. Curran was readmitted because of substance use; a urine drug screen came back positive for cocaine.
On December 11, 2025, a panel convened a hearing at Southwest to review the restriction of Mr. Curran’s liberty, pursuant to s. 672.81(2.1) of the Criminal Code.
Mr. Curran was present at the hearing and was represented by his counsel, Mr. F. Retar, who appeared by Zoom. Mr. Curran’s parents were also in attendance.
A Hospital Report, dated August 11, 2025 ("Hospital Report"), was entered as Exhibit 1.
Two updates to the Hospital Report, both dated September 23, 2025 (“Updates”), were entered as Exhibit 2.
An ROL Hospital Report, dated December 4, 2025 (“ROL Report”), was entered as Exhibit 3.
When a hospital significantly restricts the liberty of an accused for more than seven days, it has an obligation, under s. 672.56(2)(b) of the Criminal Code, to provide notice to the Board, as soon as possible. Under s. 672.81(2.1), the Board is then required to convene an ROL hearing to review the hospital’s decision, also as soon as possible.
For the ROL, the issues at this hearing were:
a) Whether the decision made by the person in charge, to significantly increase the restriction of liberty on Mr. Curran, was warranted and necessary as well as the least onerous and least restrictive option in the circumstances, at the time of its onset on September 23, 2025; and
b) Whether it continues to be so.
- Counsel for the hospital and counsel for the Attorney General advised that it was their position that the initial restriction of liberty was necessary and appropriate, as is the ongoing restriction of liberty. Counsel for Mr. Curran agreed that the initial restriction of liberty was warranted, necessary and appropriate. However, he did not feel that the ongoing restriction of liberty was necessary or appropriate, and he requested that his client be returned to live with his parents.
Index Offences:
- The circumstances giving rise to the Index Offences are extracted from the most recent Reasons for Disposition, dated November 14, 2025:
“It was noted that on February 13, 2021, police received a phone call from Mr. Mike Curran stating that his son, the accused, was in possession of an AKA-47 assault rifle with 47 rounds wanting to attend an address in Chatham to kill an individual named Chad Bloom. During the conversation with dispatch, it was also revealed that the accused wanted to go to 6 Daniels Place in Chatham to shoot his brother.
The accused was in a vehicle with his girlfriend Melissa, at the time of the incident. It was also revealed that the accused might have consumed a 26-ounce bottle of rum prior to the incident. Information received was that Melissa was attempting to have the accused put the gun down and lock it in the trunk of the vehicle. The accused and Melissa were in a blue Ford Fusion just outside of the City of Chatham. Melissa was able to calm the accused somewhat and told him she was taking him back to his parents' residence. Melissa advised the accused to hold the firearm on his lap in the front passenger seat of the vehicle while being driven back to his family’s residence. T was noted that the police attempted a cell phone ping on Melissa’s cell phone due to information that the accused was being driven in a vehicle with what was described as a loaded assault rifle. The ping came back and put her location in Chatham. Upon the accused and Melissa’s arriving at 606 Daylight Place, (the father of the accused), Mike Curran, called the police, stating that the accused was pointing what he described as an assault rifle at him. The accused’s father was concerned for his safety and stated that if the accused sees him on the cell phone he would be shot.
Officers that arrived on scene and contained the residence in question observed the accused pacing throughout the residence yelling and screaming and pointing firearm at the victims inside the house. It was noted that the officers could hear loud yelling and screaming coming from inside the residence. Numerous times offers officers could hear the accused yelling, “You need to help me, you need to get the charges dropped, this is your fault, all I ever wanted was to be a police officer, you gave me up to them, why wouldn't you protect me.” During this period police were able to observe the accused through a large window walking throughout with an assault rifle. The accused pointed the assault rifle at the victim several times and appeared to have the rifle strapped around his neck. The accused’s father advised that numerous times the accused would switch the safety to armed and off as a sign of intimidation.
It was noted that upon the accused realising the residence was surrounded by police, he became more irate. He learned this by opening the front door. Police observed the accused in possession of the assault rifle and pointing it towards the victims while continuing to yell at them. The accused then opens the back door and walked outside to the yard. This is when Melissa comes to the front door in bare feet and starts running out; she is taken into police custody.
It was noted that the accused continued to walk around the rear yard and the accused’s father followed him and pleaded with him to surrender to police. The accused continued to accost his father and point the assault rifle at him and blaming him. While continuing to yell the accused pointed the assault rifle in the direction of where the officers were staged. The accused’s father continued to plead with the accused to stop and give him the assault rifle. The accused’s mother was unable to come out the open front door while the accused was in the backyard was taken into police safety. At one point, the accused’s father was on his knees pleading while the accused pointed the firearm towards him and yell at him. The accused then went back inside the residence and presented himself at the front door while pointing the assault rifle towards the direction of officers. The accused’s father, then came back inside the residence and closed the front door.
Police were also able to listen through an open phone line inside the house. The Critical Incident Response team arrived on scene and were able to set up successful negotiation contact with the accused. From approximately 02:44 hours 03:15 hours negotiations were successful and prompted the accused to exit the residence.
Prior to coming out of the residence, the accused’s father was able to secure the assault rifle. The accused was arrested and placed into custody without further incident and was transported to Police Headquarters.
It was noted that at 02:24 hours, the accused’s mother advised the officer that “this incident is over Matthew receiving a phone call regarding his firearms officer badge. Matthew felt like he was being questioned and challenged on his authority.””
Reasons for Restriction of Liberty:
- The ROL Report and Southwest’s letter to the Ontario Review Board dated October 6, 2025, provides the reasons for the Restriction of Liberty as follows:
“Prior to this return to hospital, Mr. Curran had been residing in his family home in the community of Chatham, Ontario, under the care of the forensic outreach team. On September 19, 2025, Mr. Curran provided a sample of urine for the purpose of drug and alcohol testing, which returned a positive result for cocaine. Reports from Mr. Curran’s care team and family identified a change in mental status, including an increase in mood swings, scattered thinking, excessive spending habits, impulsivity and risk taking.
Given the reported change in presentation and the positive drug screen results for cocaine, Mr. Curran met with his attending psychiatrist on September 23rd, during a trip to the hospital coinciding with participation in his Annual Review Board Hearing. At this time his family identified concerns with him returning to the home given the substance use. Mr. Curran agreed to an admission to the hospital for a period of stabilization and assessment and was admitted to the Rehabilitation Unit (B1).”
Course in Hospital Since the Initial Restriction of Liberty:
- The ROL Report sets out Mr. Curran’s course in hospital. The following extracted paragraphs are relevant to this hearing:
“Medication changes occurred, which included an increase in his lurasidone (antipsychotic), and a change from vyvanse to strattera (for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) as vyvanse may have impacted his impulsivity.
Mr. Curran’s behaviour on the unit was appropriate. He gradually increased his privileges, and at the time of this writing was on a level 7 (full hospital and grounds passes, including time specified indirectly supervised passes in the community). At the time of this writing, Mr. Curran utilizes four, four-hour, structured passes a week to attend places like the YMCA, local library, and Canadian Mental Health Association.
He stated that he agreed to attend a residential addiction program for the ORB. On October 28, 2025, Mr. Curran, with the support of the hospital’s social worker, submitted a referral to Brentwood Recovery Centre.”
Evidence at the Hearing:
- The Board had available to it the evidence and documents forming the Record, the Exhibits, and oral evidence from Dr. Arun Prakash. Dr. Prakash was Mr. Curran’s attending psychiatrist at the time of the initial restriction of liberty. He testified as follows:
a) Mr. Curran was readmitted to hospital on September 23, 2025, and remains in hospital. He had previously been living at his family home, but substance relapse led to his readmission. Mr. Curran has a history of substance use, initially involving alcohol and more recently, cocaine. Mr. Curran was not transparent with his parents or the treatment team about his substance use, which contributed to his relapse.
b) Mr. Curran’s current treatment team, including Dr. Prakash, believe Mr. Curran needs to complete a residential substance use treatment program at Brentwood, a 12-week program. It has a six to eight week waitlist for admission. Mr. Curran previously attended a Westover program for relapse prevention, but as evidenced by his recent use, it was not effective.
c) The treatment team is also recommending that Mr. Curran receive psychological support to address his trauma, which may have been a factor in his substance use and relapse. Mr. Curran had one session with the psychologist, quite recently.
d) Mr. Curran’s parents are supportive, but their monitoring has not been sufficient to prevent relapse.
e) The treatment team does not support his immediate return to the family home, as this environment poses a risk for further relapse.
f) Any decision about community reintegration will depend on Mr. Curran’s progress at Brentwood and his ability to manage increased liberties while there.
g) The team is open to assessing Mr. Curran’s ability to remain abstinent from substances with short-term passes, such as for Christmas, but long-term passes and discharge planning will be decided only after he completes his program at Brentwood.
h) The treatment team has been optimizing Mr. Curran’s medication regimen, to address his sleep issues and ADHD symptoms.
i) While in hospital, Mr. Curran has been adherent to his medication regimen.
j) In the last reporting year, Mr. Curran was readmitted twice from his parents’ home, because of substance use. The parents admit that they had not been able to pick up Mr. Curran’s signs of decompensation and mania.
k) Mr. Curran has not been honest about his substance use, and his rationale for using cocaine was not believable. Mr. Curran obtained his substances in Chatham, from an ex-girlfriend.
l) When Mr. Curran was first readmitted to Southwest, he was hesitant to attend the Brentwood program. To his credit, he agreed to attend the Brentwood program in November, and the social worker initiated an application to the program.
m) Despite attending the Westover program, Mr. Curran has not been able to internalize the risk that using substances has on his major mental illness and his risk to public safety.
n) The treatment team is aware of the parents’ plans to monitor their son. However, it would not be safe for the public for Mr. Curran to return his parents’ home, or to live in the community independently before hee has finished his residential rehabilitation program at Brentwood.
o) When at Brentwood, Mr. Curran will have access into the community, which will allow that treatment team to assess his ability to remain abstinent from substances while being indirectly supervised.
- In response to questions from counsel for Mr. Curran, Dr. Prakash testified:
a) Mr. Curran’s initial reluctance to attend a new substance relapse program at Brentwood stems from his belief that he can manage his substance use without further help. However, to his credit, he eventually changed his mind and agreed to go to Brentwood.
b) Despite having used substances in the community, Mr. Curran did not commit any acts of violence or aggression, nor did he use weapons.
c) Mr. Curran had been abstinent for at least 80 days, but he has only achieved this abstinence with the structure and support that he has been receiving while in hospital.
d) Mr. Curran has been using level 7 privileges, which allow indirectly supervised passes into the community. While doing so, Mr. Curran has not used substances, even though they would be available to him.
e) Mr. Curran does recognize that he has a drug and alcohol problem. The last occasion that Mr. Curran used alcohol was around the time of the motor vehicle accident, but there is no evidence that he used alcohol on that specific morning.
f) Mr. Curran does not have a prior criminal record.
g) He was not in favour of having Mr. Curran returning to live with his parents now, as Mr. Curran was residing at his parents’ house at the time of the ROL. The treatment team is not certain that Mr. Curran would remain adherent to his medication if he returned to his parents’ house. Mr. Curran’s parents were responsible for supervising and monitoring Mr. Curran’s medication adherence and substance use. There were times Mr. Curran returned home late, exhibiting signs of hypomania, but the parents did not initially notice, or understand, these warning signs.
h) Mr. Curran has been adherent to his medication while in hospital.
i) The only breach of his current Disposition has been the use of substances.
j) As set out in paragraph 36 of last year’s Reasons for Disposition, lack of sleep is an additional risk factor for Mr. Curran. The treatment team has optimized Mr. Curran’s dose of trazodone, which aids with sleeping, and Mr. Curran has advised that he has been sleeping better.
k) Dr. Prakash’s attention was then drawn to paragraph 39 of last year’s Reasons for Disposition, which reads:
“Mr. Curran was diagnosed with Bipolar at an early age and has had mood swings with and without substance use. His risk of relapse is high, and substance use significantly enhances his risk of violent behaviour.’
He explained that, while Mr. Curran’s bipolar disorder can be triggered with the use of substances, he can experience a relapse even without substance use.
l) Mr. Curran’s discharge planning will be up to his current treatment team. According to Dr. Ardani, Mr. Curran’s current treating psychiatrist, it would not be appropriate to discharge him back into the community until he completes the residential treatment program.
- In response to questions from the panel, Dr. Prakash testified:
a) Mr. Curran’s insight into his addiction and substance use is not fully developed. He understands that he has bipolar disorder, and he complies with his medication, but he lacks insight into how substance use impacts relapse and his risk level.
b) Mr. Curran’s risk to the safety of the public is much higher when he uses substances.
c) Mr. Curran expressed reluctance to live in a supervised residence, or group home, as he prefers his independence. This attitude reflects his limited insight into his need for ongoing supervision.
d) Mr. Curran’s parents provide strong support, but their monitoring is insufficient to protect the safety of the public.
e) The treatment team has changed Mr. Curran’s long-acting injections from once every four weeks to once every three weeks.
f) The treatment team feels that there is an element of impulsivity in Mr. Curran’s behaviours, which may have led to him relapsing to substance use. They are hopeful that changes to his medication regimen, together with the treatment of his ADHD, will address this impulsivity. Mr. Curran will also be working with the treatment team psychologist, and Brentwood staff, to address his impulsivity.
g) He agrees with Mr. Curran’s current treating psychiatrist that Mr. Curran currently needs more supervision than his parents can provide.
h) Before Brentwood accepts a patient into their program, they need to see a sustained period of sobriety and abstinence. This requirement is another reason for Mr. Curran to remain in a hospital setting, to ensure his continued abstinence, so that he can participate in the Brentwood program.
i) It is his understanding that Mr. Curran will be assessed with independent access into the community at some point during the 12 week program at Brentwood.
j) Should Mr. Curran use substances, such as cocaine, he would experience a decompensation in his bipolar disorder. This decompensation would cause him to become a threat to the safety of the public.
k) Mr. Curran’s urine drug screen tests came back positive for substances on both September 19 and September 23. It is his understanding that cocaine would remain in one’s system for approximately 48 hours. Therefore, he believed that Mr. Curran used substances on two occasions, not just one.
- No other evidence was called.
Analysis and Conclusions
Mr. Curran has had several relapses into substance use, which resulted in decompensation in his mental stability.
The only issue before this Board is whether the ongoing restriction of liberty is necessary and appropriate. The doctor’s evidence is that Mr. Curran currently does not have the requisite insight into the risk substance use has on his mental disorder, nor how it could lead him to become a significant threat to public safety.
The treatment team identified a change in Mr. Curran’s mental status when he tested positive for cocaine, including: an increase in mood swings, scattered thinking, excessive spending, impulsivity, and risk taking. Mr. Curran’s parents, while being supportive, could not correctly identify Mr. Curran’s early signs of decompensation. We also note he used substances while residing with his parents on 2 occasions.
To Mr. Curran’s credit, he has agreed to go into a residential treatment program at Brentwood. He needs to have a sustained period of abstinence before he could participate in this program. Mr. Curran has just started, and needs to continue with, psychoeducation for his trauma issues. Future trauma or stressors could be a triggering factor in his use of substances.
The uncontroverted evidence before us is that Mr. Curran is currently not ready to be released back into the community, nor to his parents’ residence. Accordingly, for the reasons set out above, the ongoing restriction of his liberty is necessary and appropriate for the safety of the public.
DATED this 13th day of January 2026, at the City of Toronto, in the Region of Toronto.
Mr. J. Weinstein Alternate Chairperson Office of the Registrar Ontario Review Board