Re: Wesley McEwan
ORB File No: 7794
Hearing held on: Monday, May 11, 2026
Place of Hearing: Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care
Pursuant to: Section 672.81 (2.1) of the Criminal Code
Before:
Alternate Chairperson: Mr. J. Weinstein
Members: Dr. R. Kunjukrishnan
Dr. P. Wright
Mr. E. Siebenmorgen
Mr. A. Mete
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Wesley McEwan
Counsel: Mr. W. Glover
The person in charge of hospital: Counsel: Ms. J. Zamprogna
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Ms. K. Dalrymple
REASONS FOR DECISION
(Dated June 3, 2026)
Introduction
1. On November 2, 2020, Mr. Wesley McEwan was found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (“NCR”), on charges of uttering a threat to cause death or bodily harm, assault with a weapon (x2), uttering a threat to burn, destroy, or damage property, arson-reckless disregard for life (x3), and assaulting a police officer, all contrary to the Criminal Code. Mr. McEwan is currently subject to a Disposition of the Ontario Review Board (“ORB” or “the Board”) dated March 13, 2026 pursuant to which he is ordered detained at the Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care, St. Joseph's Health Care London (“Southwest” or “the Hospital”), subject to a variety of terms and conditions, including privileges that provide for community living in approved accommodation in Elgin or Middlesex Counties. Mr. McEwan transitioned to community living in May of 2022. In August of 2023, he moved into a Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) market-value rent apartment in St. Thomas with his wife. He continued to live in that residence at the time of his recent annual hearing on March 2, 2026.
2. By way of a letter dated April 1, 2026, the Hospital advised the Board that Mr. McEwan was admitted to Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care on March 30, 2026. The letter stated that there had been a notable deterioration in Mr. McEwan’s mental condition and an increased risk to the public. The Hospital requested that a Restriction of Liberties (ROL) hearing be scheduled.
3. On Monday, May 11, 2026, a panel of the Board convened in person at the Hospital to inquire into the circumstances and to determine: (a) whether the Hospital’s actions constituted a significant increase in the restrictions upon Mr. McEwan’s liberties; and (b) if so, whether the increase in restrictions was warranted and justified, both at the time that it occurred and for its duration, which continued to the time of the hearing. Mr. McEwan was present and represented by his counsel, Mr. Glover.
Evidence for the Hearing
4. The documentary evidence at the hearing consisted of the Hospital’s Restriction of Liberties (“ROL”) Report dated April 28, 2026 and the Hospital Report dated January 16, 2026. In addition, Dr. N. Mokhber, Mr. McEwan’s attending psychiatrist gave evidence, as did Mr. McEwan. Dr. Mokhber adopted the ROL Report.
Positions of the Parties
5. At the start of the hearing, counsel for the Hospital advised that Mr. McEwan’s hospital admission was continuing as of the hearing date. All parties took the position that there had been a significant increase in Mr. McEwan’s liberty restrictions and that the Hospital’s actions, both in admitting Mr. McEwan and in continuing the admission to the hearing date, were warranted in the circumstances, representing the least onerous and least restrictive measure available for managing Mr. McEwan’s risk. No party suggested that the Disposition itself should be reviewed. The parties maintained their positions at the conclusion of the evidence.
Findings
6. For the following Reasons, the panel was satisfied that the readmission of Mr. McEwan to the Hospital on March 30, 2026 constituted a significant increase in the restrictions upon his liberty, as it resulted in his loss of community living. In the circumstances, his readmission was warranted as necessary to address Mr. McEwan’s increased risk to public safety. The panel further found that his continued admission to the date of the hearing was warranted, representing the least onerous and least restrictive measure available for the safe management of his increased risk to public safety.
Index Offences
7. The circumstances surrounding the index offence are taken from the Reasons for Disposition dated April 15, 2026, and are reproduced as follows:
"Wesley Andrew McEWAN (date of birth January 6, 1986) was thirty-four years of age at the time of this incident. McEWAN suffers with mental health issues and was diagnosed with schizophrenia at the age of seventeen years of age. McEWAN currently lives with his father, who is also McEWAN's caregiver.
McEWAN has had numerous incidents with the Sarnia Police Service since 2004, the majority of the calls classified as Mental Health Act assistance calls involving McEWAN. On July 13, 2020, Sarnia Police Service officers were dispatched to McEWAN's in the city of Sarnia, Ontario.
A neighbour had called the police reporting that McEWAN was banging on the neighbour's door with a stick, causing damage to the door and siding of his house. When police arrived, the neighbour advised that McEWAN had gone back to his father's apartment.
Officers tried to speak to McEWAN. McEWAN responded by yelling and screaming at the officers and stating that his neighbour had a debt collector for a bike gang living with him and he has been breaking into MCEWAN's place, stealing things.
COUNT 1: Utter Threats to Cause Death, contrary to section 264.1(1)(a)
McEWAN was extremely agitated, slammed the door and continued to yell at the officers from inside the apartment. McEWAN was heard yelling 'I'm going to kill whoever comes through this door!'
McEWAN had barricaded the doorway at the top of the stairway which prohibited officers from accessing his apartment.
COUNTS 2, 3: Assault with a Weapon, contrary to section 267(a) x2
McEWAN began to throw household items at the officers that were now at the bottom of the stairs leading up to his apartment. Constable Philip VEALE# 244 was standing outside the house, at the front, when McEWAN opened the window above the front porch, climbed out, and threw a vacuum cleaner, mirror and other miscellaneous household items at Constable VEALE #244. McEWAN threw a flowerpot at Constable Tim VANCOWENBERG #212 and threw other items at the officers on the porch.
McEWAN then returned back into the residence.
COUNT 4: Uttering Threats to Cause Property Damage contrary to section 264.1(1)(b)
At 1:32 p.m. McEWAN stuck his head out the rear window on the east side of the residence and stated to Constable Sean VANVLYMAN #208, "I'm going to burn this fucking place down."
COUNTS 5, 6, 7: Arson Disregard for Human Life, contrary to section 433(a) x3
McEWAN then went back inside and a very short time later, officers observed a lot of smoke coming out of the back of the residence windows. Sarnia Fire was contacted.
Officers observed McEWAN hanging out the back window to escape the large amount of smoke caused by a fire McEWAN had lit within the apartment.
Other officers evacuated the remainder of the house and removed three people from the basement unit, an adult male and two children (a two-year-old and an infant).
Officers moved a mattress from the backyard to position below the apartment window to ease McEWAN's fall and McEWAN jumped from the window, landing on the mattress where he was taken into custody. McEWAN was advised that he was being apprehended under the Mental Health Act. Constable VANVLYMAN #208 transported McEWAN to Bluewater Health for a mental health assessment where McEWAN was admitted for treatment and observation.
COUNT 8: Assaulting A Peace Officer, contrary to section 210(1)(a)
While at the hospital, McEWAN became agitated and combative. McEWAN spit on Constable VANCOWENBERG # 212 and also threw a punch at Constable VANCOWENBERG #212.
McEWAN was then restrained to resume his assessment and treatment by hospital health professionals.”
Background Information
8. Mr. McEwan’s general background and course under the Board’s jurisdiction is chronicled in detail in the Hospital Report, which is in evidence at the hearing. For the purpose of informing the issues at this ROL hearing, and in particular the relationships among Mr. McEwan’s substance use, his mental condition, and his risk, the outline of his history contained at paras. 10-19 of the Reasons for Disposition dated April 15, 2026 is reproduced here in its entirety:
Mr. McEwan has a history of substance use, which began when he was approximately 16 to 18 years old, with the use of cannabis and alcohol. He has also used cocaine and, beginning approximately a year before the index offences, has been using crystal methamphetamine. He reported using cannabis on the day of the index offences and crystal methamphetamine two days before. He self-reported that cannabis made him hallucinate, "a little, but l like to" and that he has hallucinated colours when he used crystal methamphetamine.
Prior to the index offences, Mr. McEwan did not have a record of criminal convictions. However, he had several police contacts, the majority of which were related to his mental health issues. His first reported psychiatric admission was in 2004 after becoming delusional and threatening his father. He also reportedly expressed thoughts about killing both his parents because he thought they were androids. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
Mr. McEwan was placed on several Community Treatment Orders (CTOs) in the past, between 2007 and 2017. He lived in British Columbia for approximately a year. He was seeing a psychiatrist there but eventually stopped his medications, his behaviour escalated, and he was charged with assaulting a peace officer. He returned to Ontario in early 2019, his charge was transferred to Sarnia and diverted through the local Wellness Court, and he re-engaged with the local branch of the CMHA. He was readmitted to hospital in early March after responding to auditory hallucinations. He was violent and required chemical and physical restraint. His drug screen tested positive for cocaine, methamphetamine and ecstasy. He was eventually discharged on a CTO. After it was renewed in September of 2019, Mr. McEwan continued to report daily use of cannabis.
Mr. McEwan was admitted to hospital several more times between November of 2019 and the date of the index offences for various forms of disorganized and threatening behaviour in the community, and once for becoming violent in the home and threatening to kill his father. On these admissions, his drug screens consistently tested positive for a variety of substances, including cannabis, methamphetamine, and cocaine. While hospitalized immediately following his arrest for the index offences, he tested positive for cannabis and benzodiazepines.
During his initial year under the Board’s authority and at the Hospital, Mr. McEwan experienced significant improvement. His significant underlying paranoia and residual delusions and hallucinations were controlled in their intensity, though were believed to be “just below the surface”. He attended a Stress and Coping group, the Concurrent Disorders group, and then a 19-day residential treatment program known as Westover. He followed up with Thames Valley Addiction Services for relapse prevention support. His girlfriend (whom he subsequently married) moved from Sarnia into an apartment in St. Thomas to be closer to him and became an Approved Person. By May of 2022, Mr. McEwan had transitioned to the Addiction Supportive Housing (ASH) program managed by CMHA.
Mr. McEwan began to use cannabis and alcohol a few months after transitioning to the community, despite the recommendations of his treatment team. His partner also used cannabis and the team began to be concerned about her suitability as an Approved Person. However, despite Mr. McEwan’s regular use of these substances, there were no overt psychotic symptoms. Following his March, 2023 ORB hearing, he was granted an exemption from his substance use abstention clause to permit him to use cannabis and alcohol.
Mr. McEwan and his girlfriend were married in 2023 and moved into another apartment together in August, entering into a four-year lease. In May, he requested to discontinue his antipsychotic medications. They were titrated down and he had his final dose in September of 2023. Since then time, the treatment team noted an increase in the intensity of his psychotic symptoms but no significant decompensation was observed. It was reported that his symptoms were contained and had not led to dysfunction or distress. He did not demonstrate any disorganization and no issues were reported by his wife or other family members. It was reported that he was able live “his full life,” continued utilizing his passes and maintained his employment. He continued to use cannabis, described as one joint daily shared with his wife, and alcohol, in the form of one or two beers three times per week. He denied cravings for other substances such as crystal methamphetamine.
On July 26, 2024, Mr. McEwan was readmitted to the Hospital following reported and observed significant symptoms of psychosis, including delusions and paranoia, in addition to admitted use of methamphetamine. It became evident following his admission that he had been using methamphetamine for some months. He started to receive indirectly supervised passes in October and on December 5, 2024, was discharged to live with his wife in their apartment. In hospital, he was restarted on antipsychotic medication and his wife, though still valued as an important source of support for Mr. McEwan, had her Approved Person status revoked in September of 2024. She had not advised the Hospital of his use of substances and tended to minimize his psychotic symptoms.
While in hospital, Mr. McEwan used some of his indirectly supervised passes to attend Narcotics Anonymous weekly on Saturdays, Alcoholics Anonymous weekly on Mondays, and Celebrate Recovery on Sundays. He consistently attended one-on-one appointments with CMHA Thames Valley Addiction and Mental Health (Thames Valley Addiction Services) every other week since approximately November 2024. Mr. McEwan described his recent admission as a good learning experience with respect to substance use and recovery work and indicated that he planned to continue with Thames Valley Addiction Services and NA. However, after his discharge from the Hospital, he stopped engaging in all community addiction support services, stating that he did not need any further support. He stated that he planned to continue to use cannabis and drink alcohol moderately but to abstain absolutely from other substances.
For Reasons dated April 10, 2025, following last year’s annual review, the Board continued Mr. McEwan’s Detention Order and reinstated a full abstention clause, removing his permission to consume alcohol and cannabis.
Review of Mr. McEwan’s Course Prior to Readmission
9. Mr. McEwan’s diagnoses are as follows:
schizophrenia;
polysubstance use disorder; and
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
10. Mr. McEwan continued to live in the community over the previous reporting year. He lived with his wife and his wife’s brother also lived in their home in St. Thomas. Mr. McEwan remained largely stable over the course of the current reporting period when abstinent from substances. He maintained his employment (indeed, he held two jobs), attended to daily responsibilities, and demonstrated strong organization, judgment, and cognitive functioning. He was described in the Hospital Report as reliable, thoughtful, and conscientious in his commitments. However, the review period was also marked by three relapses into crystal methamphetamine use, each of which resulted in hospital readmissions. These occurred in June and September of 2025 and in early January of 2026. Notably, the January 2026 admission was in response to substance use relapse, missed Outreach Team contacts, declining to provide urine samples upon request, and increase in clinical concern given Mr. McEwan's psychiatric history. Mr. McEwan reported that he began using substances again due to an inability to focus and difficulty managing his ADHD symptoms. He was admitted for stabilization, monitoring, and support, the goals being diagnostic clarification, medication management, and initiation of 1:1 substance use counselling. He returned to live at his apartment in mid-January and was living there at the time of his annual hearing on March 2, 2026.
11. The Reasons for Disposition note that at Mr. McEwan's hearing in March, Dr. Mokhber was asked to review the early signs and symptoms of decompensation in his case. She stated that Mr. McEwan becomes irritable and impulsive, his speech changes, and he gets angry sooner. If he continues using substances, his impulsive behaviour would become a great risk for the public and for himself. She also stated that Mr. McEwan had now agreed to work with the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) again on his substance use issues, and had an appointment scheduled for March 3, 2026 (the day after the hearing) with Thames Valley Addiction Services.
Evidence at the Hearing
12. Dr. Mokhber testified that Mr. McEwan was admitted to the Hospital on March 30, 2026 due to increased substance use, presentation with command hallucinations, and lack of engagement with the Outreach Team. When he was found after repeated unsuccessful attempts to engage with him, he was demonstrating active psychosis and intoxication. The ROL report states that the Outreach Team observed a clear escalation in Mr. McEwan's psychiatric symptoms, including increased intensity in his auditory and command hallucinations. These were at times a directive in nature, specifically encouraging his substance use. Interviews with Mr. McEwan indicated that he was consumed with discussions about “Carlos”, his long standing auditory hallucination. Mr. McEwan expressed the fixed belief that “Carlos” was a spirit and that he had little control over the “lessons” that “Carlos” may impose in the future.
13. Dr. Mokhber stated that in light of his behaviour and symptoms, and having come to know Mr. McEwan for years, she was aware that when he becomes this symptomatic, violence becomes a very important issue with him. In her opinion, the treatment team had to admit him to the Hospital. While the admission occurred against Mr. McEwan's will, he cooperated with the process.
14. Following his admission, Dr. Mokhber wished to introduce divalproex sodium as an adjunct mood stabilizer that can also help with his cravings for substances. Mr. McEwan was not at first willing to accept the additional medication but agreed after a few days. He was cooperative with this medication until the weekend prior to the hearing, when he suddenly stopped taking it. This occurred on Saturday. As of the previous Friday, he had expressed that he was happy with the treatment he was receiving, including meeting with a psychologist who shared Mr. McEwan’s indigenous background and who was helping him to understand the reasons behind the hallucinations and why his cravings were returning, along with the stressors that act as triggers for him.
15. Dr. Mokhber reported that she met with Mr. McEwan earlier on the day of the hearing to find our what had happened over the weekend. Mr. McEwan reported to her that on Saturday, he decided to stop taking his divalproex because of side effects and because he was again experiencing cravings. He had concluded that the medication was not helping, so decided to stop taking it. Following their discussion, Mr. McEwan was again agreeable to continuing his medication as recommended.
16. Dr. Mokhber stated that from the pattern of his readmissions, she sees three main barriers to Mr. McEwan’s successful treatment. First, he does not consent to taking medication to address his ADHD diagnosis. Secondly, he experiences situational anxiety, though his traits do not meet the criteria for a general anxiety disorder. This becomes worse when he feels lonely, particularly outside of his wife’s presence. He has explained that with his wife making more trips to Sarnia to visit her family, he spends more time alone in St. Thomas and this operates as a trigger for his cravings for drugs. Dr. Mokhber has explained to him that he cannot expect his personal wellbeing to be tied to his wife’s presence and is hopeful that Mr. McEwan’s work with the psychologist can address this issue. The third issue is a biological one which Dr. Mokhber characterized as a dopamine system dysfunction. Dr. Mokhber stated that in simple terms, in approximately 40-60% of people with schizophrenia, this results in psychotic symptoms and cravings for drugs coming together. She was hopeful that a further adjustment of medication, by introducing bupropion, would help address both aspects, together with Mr. McEwan’s ongoing work with the psychologist.
17. Dr. Mokhber stated that she would like to see a reduction in the frequency of Mr. McEwan’s cravings before discharging him back to the community. The risk is that if he returns to live in the community with his cravings as they are and without the new medications having taken effect, he would easily return to substance use.
18. Dr. Mokhber advised that Mr. McEwan has begun with a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) group and an AA group, both within the Hospital. He has completed the Illness Management and Recovery (IMR) program. Dr. Mokhber stated that she is seeing improvement in his presentation, but he is still in early stages. He has recently had his privileges extended to Level 5 (hospital and grounds access) and the plan had been to start indirectly supervised community passes before moving to a Leave of Absence (LOA). His recent medication refusal has, however, made it difficult to place a timeline on this plan.
19. Dr. Mokhber stated that she does not want to see Mr. McEwan deprived of his employment. Her information is that one of his employers is holding a position for him. She described Mr. McEwan as a kind, hard-working man who does all the household work in his home and also cares for his wife’s brother. In Dr. Mokhber’s opinion, the structure in his life, especially his employment, is an important protective factor for Mr. McEwan and she would like to see him exercising indirectly supervised passes to return to his employment as soon as he is ready. It was noted that this had been done during his voluntary admissions over the past reporting year.
20. Dr. Mokhber advised that Mr. McEwan has agreed to participate in a residential treatment program. She was unable to provide a timeline as to when this might be available. Noting that at his March ORB hearing, Mr. McEwan had an appointment with Thames Valley Addiction Services the next day, Dr. Mokhber advised the panel that he did not attend that appointment.
21. In response to questions from Mr. McEwan’s counsel, Dr. Mokhber confirmed that Mr. McEwan now understands, as of the Friday before the hearing, that the hallucination (“Carlos”) directing him to use drugs is just that: it emanates from his mental illness and is not a real voice. However, when his cravings come back, it is also really hard for him to say “no” to drugs when they are available. His wife, however, is against his drug use and has said on multiple occasions that the marriage cannot work if he uses drugs.
22. In the past week, Mr. McEwan expressed some understanding that drugs can affect his mental state but as recently as the hearing date told her that he thinks using drugs once or even twice a month can actually help him and believed that he cannot “be perfect” [in reference to maintaining abstinence]. He expressed that the drug use helps his anxiety, his loneliness, and helps him feel more functional. He is not yet at a point where he possesses the necessary internal motivation to be able to benefit from a residential substance use treatment program.
23. In his evidence, Mr. McEwan stated that he is not a violent person, that he works at two jobs, looks after the house, keeps it clean, and enjoys birds and drawing.
24. Mr. McEwan stated that he knew he had a crystal meth addiction. He said that “Carlos” was a belief that he had but said that “Carlos” when away when he started talking with Dr. Campbell (the psychologist). Asked by Hospital counsel whether he saw a connection between “Carlos” and his use of crystal meth, Mr. McEwan said, “That’s a hard one.” He said that “Carlos” was a factor, but now that he is gone, Mr. McEwan hoped, he would have no more cravings.
25. In answer to a panel member’s questions about addiction treatment, Mr. McEwan said that he found 1:1 counselling with Dr. Campbell much more helpful than the work he did with Thames Valley Addiction Services.
26. A panel member asked Mr. McEwan about his reluctance while in the community to provide urine samples for testing by the Hospital. Mr. McEwan said he was hiding his use of drugs, but eventually “came clean” because he wanted help. He said that he is okay with taking his medication now but does not think he can maintain complete abstinence in the future. He would prefer some type of harm reduction plan whereby he can be monitored for his drug use
27. No further evidence was led following that of Mr. McEwan.
Analysis and Conclusions
28. The panel had no difficulty accepting the parties’ joint position and found independently that the restrictions on Mr. McEwan’s liberty was significantly increased when he was readmitted to the Hospital on March 30, 2026. He had previously been living in the community for a considerable period. Since his admission continued to the time of the hearing on May 11, 2026, and he had not yet been provided even indirectly supervised privileges into the community, the panel is increased liberty restrictions continued to that date.
29. The panel was also satisfied that the treatment team’s decision to admit Mr. McEwan to the Hospital on March 30 was entirely warranted. Again, this issue was not in dispute. Dr. Mokhber and her team had, over the years, come to know Mr. McEwan very well and were familiar with the impact of methamphetamine upon his mental condition, and ultimately his risk to public safety. On the evidence contained within the ROL Report, as supplemented by Dr. Mokhber’s oral evidence, the panel finds that Mr. McEwan’s mental condition was significantly deteriorating, such that an early intervention by the treatment team was necessary. Unfortunately, Mr. McEwan’s engagement with the team was also falling away and he was actively frustrating the team’s efforts at monitoring his substance consumption. To his credit, Mr. McEwan candidly admitted as much in his evidence at the hearing.
30. In these circumstances, the treatment team was left with no practical option but to admit Mr. McEwan to the Hospital. His community living, support, and monitoring were all at risk, and his risk to public safety had increased.
31. The panel is also satisfied, in agreement with the parties’ joint submission, that Mr. McEwan’s continued admission to the Hospital to the time of the hearing is warranted and represents the least restrictive measure available to the Hospital. Dr. Mokhber’s evidence is compelling in this regard. The treatment team has been making concerted efforts, through medication adjustment and various psychotherapeutic initiatives, to stabilize Mr. McEwan’s mental state and to get to the roots of Mr. McEwan’s ongoing cravings for substances, and in particular methamphetamine. At the same time, as the ROL Report and Dr. Mokhber’s evidence clearly demonstrate, the treatment team has been working to maximize Mr. McEwan’s liberty within the Hospital. Between the April 28, 2026 date of the Report and the hearing date, Mr. McEwan’s privilege level progressed from Level 3 to Level 5. Dr. Mokhber had been hopeful that Mr. McEwan would soon be able to progress to indirectly supervised privileges so that he could visit his home and return to work; however, a recent discontinuation by Mr. McEwan of some of his medication shortly prior to the hearing date has made his discharge timeline somewhat more uncertain.
32. The panel expresses its hope that the recent medication adjustments, psychotherapeutic work with a psychologist who shares Mr. McEwan’s indigenous background, will, as Mr. McEwan co-operates with his team, prepare him for a successful community transition.
33. In approaching this matter, the panel has considered the evidence through the lens of the factors in s. 672.54 of the Criminal Code.
DATED this 3rd day of June 2026, at the City of Toronto, in the Toronto Region.
Eric Siebenmorgen
Legal Member
____________________________
Office of the Registrar
Ontario Review Board