OTTAWA -- A Manitoba federal cabinet minister is expressing dismay that a mentally ill man who carried out a beheading on a Greyhound bus almost seven years ago may soon be released to live a Winnipeg group home.
Shelly Glover released a statement late Monday, hours after Vince Li's treatment team at the Selkirk Mental Health Centre in Manitoba recommended he be moved to the locked mental health ward of Winnipeg's Health Sciences Centre.
The team also told a criminal code board review hearing that the 46-year-old man should be given unescorted passes to go out into the city, and that he eventually be moved to a high-security group home in Winnipeg.
Glover says in her statement that it's unacceptable for dangerous and violent offenders to be released into the community when they pose a threat to society.
She raged at the provincial government and demanded an appeal when the review board last year granted Li unescorted trips into Selkirk, just north of Winnipeg.
The province in turn accused her of trying to score political points on a serious issue of public safety.
Glover said in her statement that the federal government stands firmly by its legislative changes to the Not Criminally Responsible Reform Act, which took effect last June. The act requires someone found not criminally responsible for a crime to be designated by a court as high-risk to reoffend.
If that designation is given, a court must revoke it before release is approved. The law also allows for an extension to the length of time between review board hearings from one year to up to three, and can deny unescorted passes.
Victims must also be informed when the person is released and told about their living arrangements. The law was introduced because of Li's case and can be applied retroactively, but it's not clear if it will be used in this case.
"Our government has worked hard to ensure that those who break the law are held accountable for their actions; that penalties match the severity of crimes committed; and that the rights of victims come before the rights of criminals," said Glover.
Li killed Tim McLean in 2008 during a schizophrenic episode while travelling between Edmonton and Winnipeg. He was found to be not criminally responsible and has been in the Selkirk Mental Health Centre ever since.
