Re: Osama Filli
ORB File No: 7610
Hearing held on: Friday, October 31, 2025
Place of hearing: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
Pursuant to: Section 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code
Before: Alternate Chairperson: Mr. B. Garrow Members: Dr. B. Sheppard Dr. L.O. Lightfoot Ms. J. Ferguson Mr. S. Duffy
Parties Appearing: Accused: Osama Filli Counsel: Ms. M. Perez
The Person in charge of Hospital: Counsel: Ms. M. Warner
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Ms. V. Culp
REASONS FOR DISPOSITION
(Dated February 3, 2026)
Introduction
On October 1, 2019, Osama Filli was found not criminally responsible (“NCR”) on account of mental disorder on a charge of manslaughter contrary to the Criminal Code, (the “Code”).
Mr. Filli is currently subject to a disposition of the Ontario Review Board, (the “Board”), dated February 18, 2025, detaining him at the General Forensic Unit of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (“CAMH”/the “hospital”), with discretionary privileges up to and including the ability to reside in the community in approved accommodations.
On October 31, 2025, the Board convened a hearing, pursuant to s. 672.81(1) of the Code to conduct the annual review of the current disposition. Mr. Filli was present and represented by counsel.
The issues before the Board are whether Mr. Filli continues to pose a significant risk to the safety of the public, and if so, what is the necessary and appropriate disposition to manage that risk having regard to the criteria set out in s. 672.54 of the Code.
The parties jointly submitted that there be no change to Mr. Filli’s current disposition. In addition, Mr. Filli’s counsel requested that the current disposition be amended to include a provision for travel passes to the United Kingdom (England) and Saudi Arabia. The issue of Mr. Filli’s significant threat was not contested.
For the reasons that follow the Board finds that Mr. Filli continues to pose a significant threat to the safety of the public and that his care should continue on the same terms as his current disposition.
Evidentiary Record
- Dr. Woodside co-authored the Hospital Report dated October 6, 2025, Exhibit 1, and testified on behalf of the hospital. A Victim Impact Statement authored by Ms. Periera, dated January 20, 2025, was tendered by counsel for the Attorney General of Ontario and entered as Exhibit 2. A study permit issued by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to Mr. Filli was entered as Exhibit 3. No further evidence was adduced at the hearing.
Background
Mr. Filli’s personal and psychiatric history, including the details of his mental disorder and treatment since being found NCR, are described in detail in the Hospital Report. Briefly, Mr. Filli is 34 years of age, single with no dependents. He arrived in Canada in December 2012, as a refugee and applied for protected person status. Upon his arrival in Canada, he stayed with relatives for about one month before moving out to live with friends. At the time of the index offence, he was residing in a shelter in Toronto. Mr. Filli reported having left school in grade 10 while living with his family in Saudi Arabia. In the period preceding the index offence he reported having received benefits from Ontario Works to support himself. Mr. Filli is currently unemployed, but up to October 5, last, he had been volunteering at three community organizations. He is capable of consenting to psychiatric treatment and managing his personal property.
Mr. Filli’s current diagnoses are schizoaffective disorder (bipolar subtype), gambling disorder and alcohol use disorder. He is treated with clozapine and other medications.
The circumstances surrounding the index offences are reproduced from the most recent Reasons for Disposition dated April 7, 2025:
“On September 26, 2014, Mr. Filli bought a knife. He testified that he bought the knife to replace the one that had been taken from him on September 14th.
Mr. Filli went to a park at around 10 or 10:30 p.m. and drank about 5-6 shots of bourbon and consumed some marijuana with five other men. He had stopped drinking about three hours before the offence. After drinking in the park Mr. Filli went to a bar and then to a café. Shortly before 3 AM on September 27, Mr. Filli was sitting outside the café when Mr. Berhane came to sit next to him. Mr. Filli and Mr. Berhane began yelling at each other and pushing each other. This initial confrontation was broken up but a second confrontation occurred shortly afterwards. In the second confrontation there was pushing and punching. A friend of Mr. Berhane became involved and attempted to stop the fight. At this point, Mr. Filli took out his knife and stabbed Mr. Berhane. As “I [Justice Forestell] found in my earlier reasons, Mr. Filli subjectively believed that he was in danger of being killed or kidnapped but that belief was not objectively reasonable.
Additional Exhibits indicate following the attack, Mr. Filli fled the scene. Police received several 911 calls and attended the scene. The victim was transported to the Toronto East General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. On September 28, 2014, police attended the YMCA Men’s Shelter on Queen Street West in Toronto, where Mr. Filli was located and arrested for Second Degree Murder.”
Course Since Last Annual Review
During the reporting period Mr. Filli resided at CAMH’s General Rehabilitation Unit C. According to the Hospital Report and confirmed by Dr. Woodside, Mr. Filli had been having a good year. There had been no significant management issues. He complied with all medications, his urine screens were all negative, and there were no AWOL incidents, as in the past. Mr. Filli remained very active in programming and activities and received positive feedback from the community organizations where he volunteered.
A mental status examination on or about October 1, Mr. Filli was reported to be calm and cooperative. There was no formal thought disorder. He denied all delusions and did not endorse any perceptual disturbances. He was not observed to be responding to internal stimuli. Mr. Filli is also reported to have displayed good insight and judgment. He agreed that he had mental health issues and needed to take antipsychotic medication to prevent a relapse. However, he maintains the view, in so far as the index offence is concerned, that he acted in self-defence.
On October 5, however, he is alleged to have assaulted another patient on his unit. The incident is alleged to have occurred at Paul Garfinkel Park adjacent to the CAMH campus, while Mr. Filli was using an indirectly supervised pass. Prior to the incident, Mr. Filli had been using level 8 indirectly supervised passes for the purposes of recreation and socialization in the community. As a result of the incident, Mr. Filli’s passes into hospital grounds, and the community were suspended and remain so.
At the time of the hearing, the issues surrounding the alleged assault had not been resolved. Apparently, the victim has not decided whether to press charges. In the meantime, Mr. Filli has been reluctant to discuss the circumstances giving rise to the incident, having been cautioned by both Dr. Woodside and counsel that whatever he says may be disclosed should charges be laid. Unfortunately, the treatment team is not in a position to restore Mr. Filli’s privileges until he describes in detail what occurred, and they have had an opportunity to analyse his behaviour.
Complicating the matter is a report that two other patients, unassociated with Mr. Filli, approached the victim and warned him not to press charges.
The treatment team had been engaged in finding transitional housing for Mr. Filli, anticipating that he was progressing towards community living. An application to one of the housing providers was recently declined. Any further applications will require disclosure of the alleged assault, which will likely result in further delaying his transition to community living.
Dr. Woodside expressed that the treatment team is not opposed to considering travel passes, subject to approving a planned itinerary, and ensuring adequate safeguards were in place to ensure medication compliance and treatment, if necessary. However, granting travel passes are normally granted after a period of successful community living, involving 10 or more months of prolonged mental stability.
Analysis and Conclusions
Having considered all of the evidence, including Mr. Filli’s history of violence, his psychotic illness, alcohol use disorder, and risk of treatment non-adherence, detailed in the Hospital Report, and the submissions presented by the parties, the Board finds that Mr. Filli continues to pose a significant threat to the safety of the public and that his care should continue under the terms of his current disposition.
We decline Mr. Filli’s request to include travel passes in his disposition on the basis that it is premature to consider granting such privilege. Mr. Filli’s passes are currently suspended and the opportunity to live in the community and satisfy the criteria for the granting of such passes is not expected to arise in the near future, especially given the uncertainties surrounding the allegations stemming form the October 5, incident.
In coming to these conclusions, the Board has considered its responsibility pursuant to s. 672.54 of the Code to make a disposition that is necessary and appropriate in the circumstances, taking in to account the safety of the public, which is the paramount consideration, the mental condition of the accused, his reintegration into society, and his other needs.
DATED this 3rd day of February, 2026, at the City of Toronto, in the Toronto Region.
Mr. B. Garrow Alternate Chairperson
__________________ Office of the Registrar Ontario Review Board