Toronto man not criminally responsible for killing his grandmother is free despite psychiatrist's warning
A Toronto man found not criminally responsible six years ago for killing his grandmother and trying to kill a health-care worker has been granted an absolute discharge by the Ontario Review Board, despite his psychiatrist’s reservations about his patient’s ability to manage his condition and his future plans to attend law school.
A judge found in April 2020 that Michael Colatosti suffered from a “major mental illness” and did not know right from wrong when he killed Elena Marcucci, 84, and repeatedly stabbed Osayuki Erhabor on Aug. 18, 2018.
While his psychiatrist, Ontario’s Attorney General and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) agreed he should get a conditional discharge and continue to be monitored to make sure he is abstaining from drugs, the review board disagreed.
“The members of the panel unanimously agree that we are unable to make a finding that Mr. Colatosti remains a significant threat to the safety of the public. Accordingly, the board orders that Mr. Colatosti be absolutely discharged,” said a recent decision from the Ontario Review Board (ORB), an independent tribunal that regularly reviews the status of individuals found not criminally responsible (NCR) due to mental disorder.
Colatosti “does not deal well with stress, often responding with anger and blaming others,” his psychiatrist told the review board.
“He posited that Mr. Colatosti is doing well ‘on paper’ regarding accommodation, employment and education, although his finances are tenuous,” said an April 2 decision from the board.
“As for his plan to go to law school after completion of his paralegal course (at Seneca College, his psychiatrist) expressed concern about the substantial risk of rejection and how that might affect Mr. Colatosti.”
Colatosti, 39, has been “diagnosed with a polysubstance use disorder, in partial remission in a controlled environment and a cannabis induced psychotic disorder, in sustained remission,” said the decision.
He “supplied urine samples as requested/required, all negative for alcohol, cannabis or other substances of misuse over the past year.”
But his psychiatrist “expressed concern that in dealing with acute stressors Mr. Colatosti would resume cannabis use and that he would not reach out for help if his psychotic symptoms return.”
The psychiatrist “posited that Mr. Colatosti believes that the ORB is detrimental to his law school ambitions, noting that ‘getting into law school is a great challenge for anyone let alone someone with his makeup.'”
Colatosti told the review board “that he knew law school was a ‘long shot’ aspiration and denied that the possibility of his application being rejected was a potential stressor.”
When the psychiatrist brought up the recommendation from CAMH that he should get a conditional discharge, Colatosti’s “response was that an absolute discharge is appropriate as he is no longer a risk, and that the ORB will ‘delay his academic ambitions.'”
The psychiatrist “noted that Mr. Colatosti had ‘impressed’ his previous inpatient treatment team as ‘somewhat overestimating of his own coping skills’ specifically about ‘the potential impact of stress on his mental state. He predicted that if Mr. Colatosti was discharged absolutely, he would not seek out any programming (for example the Wellness Recovery Action Plan or WRAP) because he ‘does not believe he needs it.’”
Colatosti “still meets the threshold for significant threat,” his psychiatrist testified, but “this risk can now be managed with a conditional discharge which is the necessary and appropriate disposition at this time, given that Mr. Colatosti has independent housing, employment and education prospects, and no behavioural issues.”
In conversations before his review board hearing, Colatosti “was angry, aggressive and dismissive,” his psychiatrist said. The same doctor “opined that a conditional discharge would allow Mr. Colatosti to have his autonomy and afford him an opportunity to show that his intention to remain abstinent is well-founded.”
Lawyers for CAMH and Ontario’s Attorney General “submitted that Mr. Colatosti still represents a significant threat to the safety of the public and should be discharged with conditions including reporting not less than once every two weeks, abstinence from alcohol and drugs and submitting samples to ensure same.”
His lawyer “submitted that Mr. Colatosti no longer represents a significant threat and should therefore be absolutely discharged.”
Before his arrest in August 2018, Colatosti lived with his maternal grandparents for two years.
On Aug. 18, 2018, his grandmother, Marcucci, prepared dinner and Erhabor helped his grandfather eat in his wheelchair.
“Michael Colatosti emerged from the basement carrying a kitchen knife. He told Ms. Erhabor ‘You are going to die today.’ She and Ms. Marcucci ran from the room, leaving Mr. Marcucci in his wheelchair.”
His grandmother and the caregiver tried to hide in the bathroom.
“Ms. Marcucci pleaded with Michael in Italian. Michael held the door open and repeatedly stabbed her,” said the review board decision.
Colatosti then stabbed Erhabor in the back, “repeatedly saying, ‘die.’ He then lifted her head up and said, ‘I’m going to cut your neck.’”
Erhabor “was able to deflect some of these blows with her hands,” said the decision. “She managed to escape from the house” and called 911.
When police arrived, Colatosti “had the knife in his hands and was observed to be covered in blood.”
Colatosti now lives “alone in an independent, market rate apartment,” said the decision, which notes he “has not been a behavioural or management problem in the community. He has not engaged in violence, aggression or any concerning behaviours. He has complied with all reporting requirements.”
Colatosti “maintains close connections with his family. He is close to his parents and sister. He keeps in touch with his parents frequently via phone and visits them regularly,” said the decision. “He attends holidays and family gatherings. He has had some cursory but optimistic contact with other family members.”
His most recent hospital report notes that “in the presence of stressors or concurrent use of substances that might have psychotogenic effects, in his case mostly likely cannabis, Mr. Colatosti’s symptoms might become worse and the psychotic experiences might further consolidate to the extent that Mr. Colatosti is not able to retain his insight and follow his rational decision of starting treatment with antipsychotic in time. He thus might succumb to the paranoia and hallucinations as to act on the psychotic symptoms, as had happened in the index offence, and cause bodily harms to others.”
Regarding his plan to abstain from using cannabis, Colatosti told the board that if he “fell off the wagon,” he would reach out to CAMH for help.
A lawyer for the hospital “argued that the evidence supports a real concern about Mr. Colatosti’s psychotic symptoms reemerging if he uses substances.”
His lawyer “observed that what triggered Mr. Colatosti’s psychosis at the time of the index offences ‘is and will always be a mystery’ i.e. was it that the cannabis he last used was ‘laced,’ was it because of his cumulative use, and/or was it his hypersensitivity? Regardless, she argued that abstinence is prevention and that he is committed to abstinence.”
The risk Colatosti “poses, if any, is miniscule,” his lawyer said.
Colatosti told the review board he sees his family physician every three months. But he hasn’t told his doctor about the killing and attempted murder that landed him at CAMH.
“The panel urges Mr. Colatosti to make full disclosure of his history to his family physician … at a minimum and recommends that he give strong consideration to having a civilian psychiatric team in place going forward.”
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