Man found not criminally responsible in death of parents to stay in locked Manitoba mental health facility

A man recently found not criminally responsible in the killings of his parents and attempted murder of his former supervisor will soon be moved to a locked mental health facility north of Winnipeg, where he will remain indefinitely.

Next week, Trevor Farley will be transported from Headingley Correctional Facility to an 18-bed locked ward of Selkirk Mental Health Centre, where he will continue treatment for a mental health condition, according to details from a hearing of the Mental Health Review Board in Winnipeg this week.

In October, a Manitoba Court of King's Bench judge ruled that due to a mental disorder, Farley was not criminally responsible for killing his parents, Judy Swain and Stuart Farley, in 2021, nor for attempting that same day to murder his former supervisor at Seven Oaks Hospital, Candyce Szkwarek.

The judge also classified Farley, 39, as a high-risk accused — something he and his defence team agreed to — an exceptionally rare and extremely restrictive designation in Canada. 

Farley was ordered to detention in a secure mental health facility, with annual hearings before a judge to go over the status of his treatment.

The case was sent to the Mental Health Review Panel to rule on a detention and treatment plan, details of which were discussed at a hearing Friday.

Sheriffs escorted Farley, who was wearing shackles, into the hearing.

Crown prosecutor Shannon Benevides asked that Farley be held in a locked ward of the Selkirk Mental Health Centre long-term, with his only access to the outdoors being a courtyard connected to the ward that is surrounded by a more than four-metre-high concrete wall.

She asked the panel to impose a structured treatment plan ensuring Farley continues to take antidepressant and antipsychotic medication.

Considered a 'moderate' risk: psychiatrist

Dr. Shauna Sawich, a forensic psychiatrist at the Selkirk centre, will be involved in co-ordinating the early stages of his transition to the facility, the hearing was told.

A panel of mental health experts who reviewed evidence in the aftermath of the Oct. 27, 2021, attacks questioned whether Farley may have been living with an undiagnosed schizoaffective disorder at the time, as he was experiencing hallucinations and religious-based delusions.

Sawich assessed Farley this month and said he is considered a "moderate" risk. His current diagnosis is bipolar 1 disorder, she said, though he may have been in the grip of some kind of mood episode during the time of the attacks.

He hasn't shown recent signs of psychosis or hallucinations, Sawich said.

"If he maintains stability, continues taking his medication, both would be protective factors" against future violence, she said.

He may eventually be permitted supervised visits with family inside the facility, said Sawich.

Prosecutors and members of the review board said the authority in charge of the facility will need to firm up details of a safety plan for Farley in light of his high-risk designation, particularly around rare cases when he may be permitted to leave for medical purposes.

The night before the attack, Farley checked himself into the Mental Health Crisis Response Centre in Winnipeg. Experts there determined he should be involuntarily admitted, but he left the building on his own.

He went on to kill his father in Winnipeg and his mother in New Bothwell, before driving to Seven Oaks Hospital back in Winnipeg, where he stabbed Szkwarek.

Benevides said given that he was able to leave the crisis response centre, she asked the panel to clarify whether sheriffs, peace officers or security guards at the Selkirk hospital will be in charge of escorting and monitoring Farley outside the centre in those rare cases.

Three lawsuits were filed after Farley's trial — including one by members of Farley's family and one by Szkwarek — against Manitoba health authorities, alleging they failed to provide adequate treatment to Farley when he sought treatment before the attacks.

Terra Welsh, a lawyer representing Shared Health and the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, was present at the Mental Health Review Board hearing Friday. So were Szkwarek and her daughter.

Szkwarek submitted a victim impact statement detailing how the physical and emotional trauma of that day has deeply impacted her and shaken her sense of safety.

"Anytime I have to go back to the hospital setting I am traumatized," part of the statement reads.

After the hearing Friday, Szkwarek said the prospect of Farley escaping during a supervised medical appointment outside the facility scares her.

"I think they need to come down with a more set plan," she said, which should include requiring two sheriffs as escorts in such cases.

She also said she wants the detention plan to ensure Farley is "going to be safe."

Her daughter Katie Szkwarek said she's "just glad that all this can be over soon … and he'll get the help he needs."

The Mental Health Review Board will issue its decision next week on details of the detention plan.