Nurse who killed parents fights ‘high-risk’ status that keeps him in hospital

A former Winnipeg nurse, who was in the grip of psychotic delusions when he killed his parents and attacked a nursing supervisor, is in court this week, fighting to lift a rare designation that restricts his release from mental hospital.

Two years ago, 41-year-old Trevor Farley was found not criminally responsible in the Oct. 27, 2021 slayings of his parents, Stuart Farley and Judy Swain, and a knife attack that same day at Seven Oaks General Hospital that nearly killed supervisor Candyce Szkwarek.

At Farley’s October 2023 court hearing, Court of King’s Bench Justice Ken Champagne ordered that he be designated a high-risk accused — a first in Manitoba since former prime minister Stephen Harper’s Conservative government introduced legislation creating the designation in 2014.

As someone found not criminally responsible for their crimes, Farley’s case falls under the jurisdiction of the Criminal Code Review Board, which would normally be tasked with deciding whether he should remain in a secure psychiatric facility, or be subject to a conditional discharge or absolute discharge and release to the community.

As a high-risk accused, it is mandatory that Farley be held in a secure hospital setting. Only a superior court judge can revoke the designation and approve his release from hospital.

Under the legislation, before an offender can be designated a high-risk accused, a judge must be satisfied they will commit violence if released, or the crimes for which they are in custody are “so brutal as to indicate a risk of grave physical or psychological harm.”

Prosecutors oppose the removal of the high-risk designation against Farley.

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“Our position is simple, it’s simply too soon for the court to relinquish its oversight,” Crown attorney Rustyn Ullrich told Champagne Monday at the start of the week-long hearing.

“We are not saying never,” Ullrich said. “This is not a punishment for Mr. Farley. This is about his progress and treatment, but ultimately our paramount concern… is the safety of the public.”

A 52-page forensic report provided to court in 2023 found that in the weeks before the attacks, Farley was suffering from “religious-based command hallucinations” that made him believe the victims were “contaminated with evil” and the evil needed to be “cut out.”

Farley’s treating psychiatrist is set to testify Thursday. Court is also expected to hear three victim impact statements, including one from Szkwarek.

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca

Dean Pritchard
Courts reporter

Dean Pritchard is courts reporter for the Free Press. He has covered the justice system since 1999, working for the Brandon Sun and Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 2019. Read more about Dean.

Every piece of reporting Dean produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.