Ontario Review Board
Re: Roger Guppy
ORB File No: 8017
Hearing held on: May 4, 2026
Place of hearing: Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences 700 Gordon Street, Whitby, Ontario
Pursuant to: Section 672.81 (1) of the Criminal Code
Before:
Alternate Chairperson: Mr. J Weinstein Members: Dr. S. Chatterji Dr. M. Green Hon. A. Sosna Mr. A. Mete
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Roger A. Guppy Counsel: Mr. C. Hynes
The Person in charge of hospital: Counsel: Mr. L. Crowell
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Ms. N. MacDonald
REASONS FOR DISPOSITION
(Dated: June 3, 2026)
Introduction:
On January 27, 2022, Roger Guppy was found not criminally responsible on account of a mental disorder (NCR) on charges of two counts of failing to comply with probation all under the Criminal Code of Canada ( “the Criminal Code”).
He is currently subject to an Ontario Review Board Disposition dated June 10. 2025, whereby he is detained at the Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences, 700 Gordon Street, Whitby, Ontario (“Ontario Shores”), with discretionary privileges up to and including the ability to live in the community in supervised accommodation approved by the person in charge of the hospital.
A panel of the Ontario Review Board (the “Board”) convened an annual meeting on May 4, 2026 at Ontario Shores to review the current Disposition pursuant to s. 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code. Mr. Guppy was present at the hearing and was represented by counsel, Mr. C. Hynes.
Dr. B. Chuong testified at the hearing. Introduced into evidence is Exhibit 1, the Hospital Report dated April 26, 2026. Dr. Chuong adopted the contents of the report.
The issue at this hearing is whether Mr. Guppy is a significant threat to public safety, as defined in s. 672.5401 of the Criminal Code. If so, the necessary and appropriate Disposition in the circumstances must be determined, bearing in mind the factors enunciated in s. 672.54 of the Criminal Code.
Initial Position of the Parties:
At the outset of the proceedings, all parties were canvassed as to their positions.
Counsel for the Hospital, counsel for the Attorney General, and counsel for Mr. Guppy submitted that Mr. Guppy continued to represent a significant threat to the safety of the public. By joint submission, counsel recommended a continuation of the present Detention Order with two amendments to be detailed below.
For the reasons that follow, the panel finds that Mr. Guppy continues to represent a significant threat to the safety of the public, and the necessary, least restrictive, and appropriate disposition in the present circumstances is a continuation of the present Detention Order.
Current Psychiatric Diagnoses:
- Schizophrenia Other Specified Personality Disorder
Index Offences:
The circumstances surrounding the index offences are summarized from last year’s Reasons: Breach of Probation (x2)
On May 25, 2021, police were dispatched to a residence in Markham regarding a domestic assault incident. The home was owned by Mr. Guppy’s parents Winston and Indra Guppy. At the time, Roger Guppy was governed by a probation order that he not associate or contact his parents except with their written revocable consent. No consent had been provided to Mr. Guppy for contact or communication.
When the police entered the home, they found the side door to be broken and barricaded with furniture. The home had been ransacked. Mr. Guppy was standing at the top of the stairs yelling obscenities at the officers. Mr. Guppy’s parents had barricaded themselves in an upstairs washroom and called the police after Mr. Guppy had broken into the home.
Mr. Guppy’s parents advised the police that their son had entered a shed in the backyard, retrieved a sledgehammer and forcibly entered the home ransacking it.
Mr. Guppy was placed under arrest and transported to the police station. After being housed in a cell, Mr. Guppy struck an officer’s jaw with his closed fist through the cell bars.
On July 22, 2020 Mr. Guppy had been convicted assault, two count of assault with a weapon, and assault causing bodily harm as a result of an incident on October 17, 2019 during which he assaulted his father and his sister in the family home. Mr. Guppy had repeatedly punched and kicked both victims and struck his father’s head with a vase rendering him unconscious. In addition to being incarcerated for the offences he was placed on probation for three years and was bound by that probation order when he committed the index offences in May of 2021.
Current Diagnosis:
- Schizophrenia Cannabis use Disorder Severe
Background:
The following is summarized from paras. 6-12 in last years Disposition.
Mr. Guppy is 47 years old. He is single. He has no dependants. He was born and raised in Toronto, the eldest of four. By all accounts he had an unremarkable childhood.
His family began to notice changes in his behaviour when he attended high school. He was using substances, got into fights, resulting in suspensions. He had violent outbursts towards his family, and exhibited violent environmental aggression in the family home.
Mr. Guppy graduated from high school and went on to receive a diploma in an electrical course at Humber College. He worked at several electrical construction sights but has not worked since 2014 after falling and breaking his knee and elbow. He is currently supported through the Ontario Disability Support Program (“ODSP”).
Criminal Record:
- Mr. Guppy has a significant criminal record commencing in 1997 through 2021. In that period, he was convicted of three assault charges, one count of assault with a weapon, one count of uttering threats, one count of mischief, and six counts of breaches of probation. He has been sentenced to custody on numerous occasions.
Psychiatric History:
In October 2010, Mr. Guppy was found NCR on charges of harassing phone calls and admitted to Ontario Shores. He was discharged to reside in the family home in February 2012, and referred to an Assertive Community Treatment Team (“ACTT”). He was granted an Absolute Discharge following his November 26, 2012 ORB hearing,
Between his discharge from the ORB in 2012 and his arrest in 2021, Mr. Guppy had multiple admissions to hospital, often in the context of non-compliance with medication. He presented as angry, paranoid and aggressive threatening the family and damaging the home. His family reported he was noncompliant with medication. Although he was assessed by several psychiatrists there was no consistent diagnosis whether he suffered from a psychotic disorder.
Following the NCR finding on the most recent offences. Mr. Guppy was admitted to Ontario Shores on January 22, 2022. He was found incapable with respect to treatment decisions. His mother is his substitute decision maker (“SDM”).
Evidence at Hearing:
Following Mr. Guppy’s last annual review hearing he remained on the general Forensic Community Reintegration Unit (“FCRU”) until his discharge on March 6, 2026 to the Forensic Outpatient Service (“FOS”) where he presently resides at McKay House a 24 -hour supervised group home.
As set out in the Hospital Report, “Mr. Guppy had a positive year evident by the transition into the community. His medication adherence and engagement in individual psychotherapy have led to his stability. (pg. 46).
Mr. Guppy’s engagement is borne out in his active involvement and attendance in multiple programs prior to and after his transfer to McKay House. Those include amongst others, 13 sessions with Dr. Marshall a psychologist where insight into schizophrenia was reviewed, the successful completion of the “Illness Management & Recovery:Drug and Alcohol Use “where participants focused on identifying problems associated with alcohol and drug use, plan for high-risk situations, and develop a personal sobriety program.
Mr. Guppy successfully attended four out of six sessions of the Group Discharge 101to help participants understand the role of the Forensic Outpatient Services team and how the ORB and risk assessments impact them once the are in the community.
Mr. Guppy made good progress regarding insight into his substance use and anxiety, while meeting regularly with his Concurrent Disorder counsellor to discuss his future goals and how substance use could impact those goals. Mr. Guppy continued to work with his Forensic Transitional Case manager and regularly went off unit with them without any issues.
Regarding treatment, Mr. Guppy remained on paliperidone palmitate injection with fair response although residual psychosis remained as described with his delusions. He was adherent with his medications and tolerated them without concern. He was tested for substance use. Since discharge into the community, his urine toxicology was negative for all tested substances. Since discharge into the community, he has attended all outpatient appointments with the Forensic Outpatient Service.
Mr. Guppy utilized his supervised privileges on hospital grounds appropriately. Prior to the discharge, he utilized his indirectly supervised overnight passes for three-night leave of absences to McKay House.
Mental Status Examination
- Mr. Guppy presented as an adult male who appeared his staged age…He was typically calm and cooperative with being assessed but was not particularly forthcoming. He would generally engage in conversation with short, brief responses and required prompting for additional details… His affect was blunted with limited range..Thought content contained delusions of grandiosity although he did not offer these thoughts spontaneously. He was not observed responding to unseen stimuli. Mr. Guppy consistently denied experiencing perceptual disturbances, suicidal and/or violent ideations, plan, or intent. His insight was superficial, and his judgement was fair. (Hospital Report pg. 46).
Clinical Assessment of Risk
- A psychological assessment was completed at Ontario Shores in May 2025.
Mr. Guppy’s primary criminogenic factors are his major mental illness, lack of insight, history of violence, and treatment and supervision response. With antipsychotic treatment and being in a highly supervised and supported environment, he has continued to experience residual psychotic symptoms, mainly delusions. However, this has not been a significant barrier to discharge to the community, which has been a substantial change in Mr. Guppy’s review year. The risk factors of lacking insight into his psychotic condition, his need for treatment, and the violence risk associated with lack of treatment remains present. His history of violence has likely stemmed from both his psychotic illness as well as personality components that value the use of aggression and disregard for safety of others.
Mr. Guppy will continue to require treatment with medications for his psychotic disorder. He has benefitted from receiving an injectable anti psychotic to address the risk of non-adherence and there has been partial response. He has also benefitted from psychological treatment options including CBT for psychosis and concurrent disorders counselling, and should remain with those therapeutic programs….
[As previously noted despite having a positive year],.. Mr. Guppy still requires monitoring by professional services for any signs and symptoms of decompensation of his mental health and proper adherence to his treatment especially with the very recent transition to a lower supervision environment…
Based on the above risk assessment [Mr. Guppy] would remain a low moderate risk for violence under the [current] Disposition...(Hospital Report pg. 46-47).
Assessment and Findings.
The panel finds that in the last reporting year Mr. Guppy has made important strides recognizing his mental illness, and taking active steps to deter setbacks. However, the recognition is partial. As noted in the Mental Status examination at pg. 46 of the Hospital Report; “Thought content contained delusions of grandiosity although he did not offer these thoughts spontaneously. His insight was superficial, and his judgement was fair”.
Despite Mr. Guppy’s progress in the last reporting year, the panel shares some of the concerns expressed in last years Reasons for Disposition. At para. 29 last years panel found:
“Mr. Guppy has limited and fluctuating insight into his mental illness, his risk for violence, and the need for treatment. Over the year in review, he has disagreed with the diagnosis of schizophrenia and, at other times, he endorsed both his diagnosis and the importance of adherence to medication. Overall, the doctor stated that his insight is superficial. Most often, he minimizes the events of the index offences and denies that he was experiencing psychotic symptoms at the time.”
At para 34 the panel found; “Mr. Guppy suffers from a mental illness, namely schizophrenia. Notwithstanding compliance with medication, he continues to experience residual symptoms, including delusions. He has stated on a number of occasions that he does not suffer from Schizophrenia….
At para 36 the panel held that it;
is mindful of the events following Mr. Guppy’s discharge from the Board’s jurisdiction in 2012. He terminated follow-up with psychiatric services in 2012 and from 2026 to 2021, he was largly untreated…his behaviour was quite unstable during this period of time, with multiple admission to hospital, elopements, reports of aggressive behaviour towards family members, and the presence of additional charges.
The panel agrees with the Hospital’s submission and the joint submission of all counsel, that Mr. Guppy continues to represent a significant threat to the safety of the public and the appropriate Disposition, which is also the least onerous, is a continuation of the current Detention Order, including a provision for community living in accommodation approved by the person in charge.
Accordingly, term 2 (f) of the Disposition is amended to read; to live in the community in accommodation approved by the person in charge.
Further the panel accepts the clinical team’s recommendation that the continuation of the Detention Order to manage Mr. Guppy’s risk to the public include the following change:
travel pass for up to two weeks within a 150-kilometer radius of Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences, upon first obtaining an approved itinerary by the person in charge of Ontario Shores Centre for mental health Sciences, indirectly supervised.
DATED this 3rd day of June 2026, at the City of Toronto, in the Toronto Region.
Alexander Sosna Legal Member
Office of the Registrar Ontario Review Board