Ontario Review Board
Re: Kenneth Thibeault
ORB File No. 8105
Hearing Date: March 2, 2026
Hearing Location: St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton, West 5th Campus
Pursuant to: Section 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code of Canada;
Before:
Alternate Chairperson: Mr. R. Bigelow
Members: Dr. K. Hand Dr. T. Stirpe Ms. M. McKinnon Mr. K. McKenna
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Kenneth Thibeault Counsel: Mr. C. Cornale
The Person in charge of Hospital: Counsel: Ms. L. Barney
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Ms. A. Lepchuk
REASONS FOR DISPOSITION
(Dated March 24, 2026)
Introduction
Mr. Thibeault was found not criminally responsible (NCR) on June 13, 2022, for the Criminal Code offences of assault (x2).
He is currently subject to a detention order under a Disposition dated March 24, 2025, with privileges that extend to living in the community of Southern Ontario in accommodation approved by the person in charge.
A panel of the Ontario Review Board (the panel) convened this annual hearing on March 2, 2026, at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton, West 5th Campus (St. Joseph’s or the Hospital) to review the current Disposition pursuant to s. 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code of Canada.
At the commencement of the hearing, the Hospital recommended a continuation of the current detention order with no changes to the terms and conditions. Counsel for the Crown and counsel for Mr. Thibeault supported this recommendation.
After considering the evidence, the panel concluded that Mr. Thibeault remained a significant threat to the safety of the public and that a continuation of the detention order with the same terms was appropriate.
Index Offences
- The following are the facts related to the index offences.
Assault (No. 1)
“On Wednesday February 24th, 2021, the accused Kenneth Thibeault and the victim [KD] were at 17 Gale Crescent in St. Catharines. 17 Gale is owned by Start Me Up Niagara a community agency designed to assist marginalized individuals seek various forms of assistance. Both parties were waiting outside the front doors to speak with workers at the center.
On February 24th, 2021, at around 0900hrs [KD] was on her cell phone outside the front doors of 17 Gale Crescent in St. Catharines. She was then approached by the accused Kenneth Thibeault who began to swear at her saying “Get the fuck off the phone”. He then got close to the victims face and spit in her face. The victim then punched the accused in the face to stop the assault at which time the accused kicked her in the leg and spat in her face again. As such the accused did commit the criminal offence of assault as defined by the Criminal Code. The accused was arrested by police at 0942hrs as he was walking back toward the center. He was arrested without incident, cautioned and given his rights to counsel. The accused declined to speak with counsel and accused the victim of stealing the phone she was using from him two to three months prior.
Due to the fact that the accused was showing increasingly agitated and violent behaviour along with irrational thought he was also arrested under the Mental Health Act. He was subsequently transported to the Niagara Health Services for a psychiatric assessment.”
Assault (No. 2)
The victim and accused were casual acquaintances that frequented the same downtown area of Niagara Falls.
On Thursday October 28, 2021, the victim, [JK], had parked his e-bike in front of the Trikers Car Rental Shop, located at 4807 Victoria Avenue, Niagara Falls. The victim then went across the street to retrieve his belongings outside of the Big Bee located at 4787 Victoria Avenue.
The accused, Kenneth THIBEAULT, approached the victim and called out to him claiming that the victim was ignoring him. The accused then attacked the victim and punched him in the face multiple times with a closed fist. The attack was unprovoked, and the victim attempted to defended himself and fled across the street to returned to his e-bike with his belongings.
The accused followed the victim and punched him again in the face. The victim defended himself and attempted restrain the accused on the ground until he could get help. Three bystanders assisted the victim and allowed him to leave the area.
The accused fled the area and travelled Northbound on Victoria Avenue.
The victim returned to the area of his belongings and collapsed on the ground in tears. Witnesses contacted Police. It is believed the victim has suffered a broken nose as his nose was visibly crooked, swollen and there was a laceration on the side.
The victim was assessed by paramedics and the victim was advised that he would require further medical treatment for his injuries to his nose. The victim at that time did not attend the Hospital, however, he planned to seek medical attention later that day. The victim’s injury was photographed by Police.
The accused was located out front of 4310 Erie Avenue and arrested for assault cause bodily harm. The accused was identified verbally, and his identity was confirmed with a Niagara regional Police mugshot. The accused was transported to 2 District Central and lodged into cells to await a bail hearing.”
Hospital Report dated February 11, 2026
The Hospital Report dated February 11, 2026, was prepared for this hearing and contains a detailed review of Mr. Thibeault’s personal and mental health history.
Mr. Thibeault has an extensive criminal record that includes numerous offences of violence; assault (x6), assault bodily harm (x4), utter threats (x4), and assault with a weapon. He has also been convicted of numerous breaches of court orders.
Mr. Thibeault was initially raised in Welland, Ontario, and moved with his mother to Scarborough after the separation of his parents. His living situation became unstable with him living periodically with roommates or transferring between his parents’ homes. He has had no contact with his parents since approximately 2007. His parents are now both deceased.
Mr. Thibeault left High School in grade 11 to pursue full-time employment. He had difficulty in High School with truancy, suspensions, and poor grades. He has worked at a McDonald’s restaurant and Woodbine Racetrack.
His last intimate relationship ended in 2005, and he has been financially supported by the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) since 2007.
Mr. Thibeault first began drinking alcohol at a very young age and was attending Alcoholics Anonymous by the age of 16. He began using cannabis by the age of 11 and cocaine at the age of 13. He has also experimented with crack cocaine, heroin, MDMA, and LSD in his early twenties.
Mr. Thibeault has had many emergency room attendances and psychiatric admissions between 2005 and 2021. During much of this time, Mr. Thibeault was homeless and living in shelters or on the street. Over the years, his behaviour has been characterized by ongoing persecutory and grandiose delusional beliefs: he had earned four million dollars from playing professional sports, he was the son of a U.S. president, and that he owned Northern Ontario. His persecutory delusions included beliefs that “people were out to get him and were stealing from him”. He has also experienced delusions of reference, whereby, events, objects, or persons in his immediate environment, are seen as having a particular and unusual significance.
Mr. Thibeault’s well-established history of substance use often contributed to his psychotic episodes. As well, he has a history of not taking his prescribed medication when living in the community and not attending for psychiatric follow-up treatment.
Mr. Thibeault is diagnosed with Delusional Disorder, Stimulant Use Disorder (stimulants, cannabis and alcohol) in sustained remission in a controlled environment.
The Hospital Report indicates that Mr. Thibeault has remained mentally stable this past year. He consistently attended his outpatient appointments and was calm and polite, although typically guarded in his presentation.
On January 14, 2025, he was discharged from the hospital to live in the Community Homes for Opportunity operated by the Good Shepherd. This is a supervised congregate setting. He then moved into a one-bedroom apartment operated by Emmaus Place in September 2025. This move provided more independent living where he receives his medication under staff supervision. He is followed in the community by the Forensic Outpatient Program (FOP) and the Good Shepherd Team 5. Various programs are provided by the Emmaus Place staff.
Mr. Thibeault receives long-acting injectable medication at the forensic outpatient clinic every twenty-eight days. His oral medication is administered by the Emmaus Place staff.
His insight into his mental health and the need for ongoing medication is poor. Mr. Thibeault is incapable of consenting to healthcare decisions, and the Public Guardian and Trustee is his substitute decision maker. He does not believe that he has a mental illness and expressed that he only takes his medication because “the doctor ordered it”. Mr. Thibeault attributes past challenges to substance use and homelessness, and believes that the index offences would not have occurred if he had not been homeless at the time. He stated that his symptoms are now dormant and that “there is no possibility of them returning.”
He also has limited insight into the impact of substance use on his mental health and the ongoing need for relapse prevention support. Mr. Thibeault expressed being pleased that he was not readmitted to hospital as a result of substance use, but, was unable to identify any negative consequences of substance use. He denies any cravings for substances and suggests that his last craving for cannabis was approximately one and half years ago.
To support insight development and relapse prevention, Mr. Thibeault was referred to the forensic addictions nurse in the spring 2025 and the Good Shepherd Team 5 program in October 2025. He has met with the nurse on four occasions and meets with the Good Shepherd Team biweekly. Mr. Thibeault has indicated that he does not find these meetings beneficial and that he is doing well on his own.
Mr. Thibeault has acknowledged, that without the care and support he receives, he would “not take the effort to prepare meals, he would not be motivated to take his medication, and, maybe, have addiction issues.”
Mr. Thibeault does not have any family support in the community.
There have been no signs of psychotic decompensation this past year, or mood instability or behavioural dysregulation. There is no evidence of hallucinations or overtly expressed delusional content. There have been no incidents of violence, aggression, threats, or breaches of any conditions. The Hospital states that his stability is closely related to consistent adherence to his medication regimen including his long-acting antipsychotic medication.
He does require support with activities of daily living, such as, meal planning, grocery shopping, and cooking. Rather than seek support from staff, Mr. Thibeault will abandon a task if he is not sure how to complete the task. For example, he will not cook a certain meal if he is unsure of the cooking time, or will use a taxi because he is uncertain of the bus routes.
In October 2025, Mr. Thibeault accepted a temporary position in Rainbow’s End casual labour pool delivering flyers. To the Vocational Counsellors, this demonstrated some progress with his willingness to accept short-term work opportunities.
The risk to public safety, according to the Hospital Report, arises from his psychotic illness, his limited insight into his illness and need for treatment, his ability to manage stress, and a concern about his lack of motivation. Furthermore, Mr. Thibeault has an extensive criminal record for violence, a lengthy history of deeply entrenched substance use, and a history of non-compliance with his medication. Absent the protective factors, the support and supervision he receives, the Hospital is concerned that Mr. Thibeault would stop his treatment and engagement with the outpatient program, would return to substance use which would result in a reemergence of his psychotic symptoms, and then dysregulated violent behaviour.
Testimony Dr. Alatishe
Dr. Alatishe is Mr. Thibeault’s treating psychiatrist and he testified at this hearing.
Dr. Alatishe testified that Mr. Thibeault managed quite well this past year, and he referred to Mr. Thibeault working once per week as being very positive.
He also indicated that Mr. Thibeault requires ongoing support. He meets twice weekly with the FOP staff and biweekly with Good Shepherd Team 5 staff, which, in Dr. Alatishe’s opinion, is necessary to prevent a decompensation of his mental health.
For the upcoming year, Dr. Alatishe would like to see Mr. Thibeault develop a stronger insight into his illness and need for treatment, and gain more independence as well as maintaining the stability he has achieved.
Dr. Alatishe did not believe that a conditional discharge was sufficient to manage the risk to public safety given the need for the Hospital to approve housing and return Mr. Thibeault to the hospital rapidly if the need arises.
Dr. Alatishe advised Crown Counsel that Mr. Thibeault has not yet engaged in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Psychosis programming.
Dr. Alatishe advised the hearing that since the preparation of the Hospital Report Mr. Thibeault had recently made contact with his daughter through social media, and that he had recommenced volunteer work with the Good Shepherd program.
Submissions
- At the conclusion of the evidence, the parties each continued to recommend a continuation of the detention order with the same terms and conditions as in last year’s Disposition.
Analysis
After considering the evidence, the panel accepts that Mr. Thibeault remains a significant threat to the safety of the public, and that a detention order with the same terms and conditions is necessary and appropriate.
Mr. Thibeault has remained stable this past year with the support and supervision of the FOP and the Good Shepherd staff. He has not engaged in any violent or aggressive behaviour, and has attended to all his scheduled appointments. He has not used substances and has been compliant with his medication regimen. He is currently engaged in volunteer work once per week. This is all very positive.
He remains a significant risk to public safety because of a number of factors. Mr. Thibeault suffers from a Delusional Disorder with psychotic symptoms that resulted in the violent behaviour evident at the time of the index offences. It is also likely that these symptoms contributed to violent behaviour that resulted in numerous criminal convictions over many years.
Another strong contributing factor to the violent behaviour was substance abuse. Mr. Thibeault has been using various substances for many years, and it is only with the support he is currently receiving that he has been able to refrain from substance use. The consumption of substances would inevitably result in a decline of his mental stability.
Mr. Thibeault has been adherent to his medication regimen, but again, that is with the support of the professional staff. The evidence indicates that Mr. Thibeault has limited insight into his illness and the need for treatment. He has expressed a belief that he does not have a mental illness and, therefore, does not need medication. He attributes the index offences to homelessness rather than his illness and substance use. The delusions would return if Mr. Thibeault stopped taking his medication, and with the reemergence of psychotic symptoms, his behaviour would most likely become antisocial and violent.
The staff is also concerned with a lack of motivation. Specifically, Mr. Thibeault will rarely initiate contact with the staff to seek assistance or guidance. This is particularly significant since Mr. Thibeault requires assistance and support to manage routine daily activities such as cooking, grocery shopping and learning bus routes. Absent support, a dramatic decline in mental and physical health could be expected.
Mr. Thibeault has only been living at Emmaus Place since September 2025, and it is appropriate for the Hospital staff to monitor his progress over the next year with the current support to manage the risk to public safety. The Hospital also requires the authority to admit Mr. Thibeault to hospital rapidly if necessary to manage the public safety risk.
In coming to this conclusion, the panel has applied the principles provided in s. 672.5401 of the Criminal Code.
Dated this 24th day of March 2026, at the City of Toronto, in the Toronto Region.
Kevin McKenna
Legal Member
Office of the Registrar
Ontario Review Board