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A Winnipeg man found not criminally responsible for killing his parents and stabbing a woman during a psychotic episode has successfully had a designation labelling him high-risk removed, in a case that marked the first time a Manitoba court has considered a motion involving the rare designation.
The update means the decision on whether to eventually give Trevor Farley a conditional or absolute discharge will now fall to a provincial review board, which is standard practice for people found not criminally responsible.
In 2023, Farley was found not criminally responsible due to mental disorder in the Oct. 27, 2021, stabbing deaths of his 73-year-old parents, Judy Swain and Stuart Farley, at their homes, and the stabbing of his former supervisor Candyce Szkwarek at Seven Oaks General Hospital.
He was labelled what’s known as a high-risk accused, which added an extra layer of restriction that meant he would have only been able to get a discharge with approval from a superior court judge.
“The evidence satisfies me that there is no longer a substantial likelihood that Farley will use violence that can endanger the life or safety of another person,” Court of King’s Bench Justice Kenneth Champagne said in his Tuesday morning decision in Winnipeg, where Farley sat quietly in the prisoner’s box after being brought into the courtroom with his wrists and ankles shackled.
“Although the evidence no longer supports [a high-risk accused] designation, the evidence does support and satisfies me that Farley remains a significant threat to public safety.”
The judge ordered Farley to continue to be detained in custody in a hospital, subject to any conditions the review board deems appropriate. Court heard he’s being held in the Selkirk Mental Health Centre.
Champagne said the Crown would be allowed to ask for him to be designated high-risk again, “should Farley’s treatment falter, should the medication no longer control his mental illness, [or] should Farley refuse treatment or become aggressive or violent.”
Court previously heard Farley, who had worked as a nurse, was experiencing religious delusions at the time of the stabbing attacks.
