A 25-year-old Hamilton man discovered not criminally liable for stabbing his teenage cousin to dying at a household barbecue will stay at a psychiatric hospital indefinitely.
Board Orders Continued Detention
The Ontario Evaluation Board issued its ruling final week, directing Laureano Bistoyong to remain in custody on the Forensic Psychiatry Program on the West fifth Campus. Detailed causes for the choice will turn into public quickly. Annual opinions will assess his standing transferring ahead.
The Deadly Incident
In 2023, on Canada Day, Bistoyong fatally stabbed his 16-year-old cousin, Mark Bistoyong, within the chest with a chef’s knife throughout a household barbecue close to a Hamilton Mountain residence. Mark was sitting and consuming amongst family on the time.
The stabbing adopted a heated basketball recreation close by. Throughout Bistoyong’s 2024 trial, Superior Court docket Justice Andrew Goodman initially convicted him of second-degree homicide. A subsequent psychological well being analysis led his protection to argue he was not criminally accountable.
Schizophrenia Analysis
Forensic psychiatrists examined Bistoyong extensively. Dr. Gary Andrew Chaimowitz, who assessed him over 60 days, recognized schizophrenia. Chaimowitz testified that Bistoyong couldn’t distinguish proper from improper and believed his cousin was a demon through the assault. Signs developed step by step and subtly, resulting in social withdrawal unnoticed by household and pals.
A second psychiatrist supported this analysis. In November, Justice Goodman dominated Bistoyong not criminally accountable, choosing detention over discharge choices to steadiness public security and therapy wants.
Household’s Response
Mark’s mom, Merl Bistoyong, expressed disappointment outdoors the courthouse. “This isn’t justice,” she said. “It is crime. My son is being victimized over again, this time by the authorized justice system.” She described her son as loving and beneficiant, the glue holding the household collectively.
Restricted Privileges
The board’s February 18 order requires the hospital to develop a program limiting Bistoyong’s off-site entry to escorted medical, dental, authorized, or compassionate visits. Neighborhood entry with non-staff supervision or unescorted requires board approval. Police should be notified of any departures.
