Truck attack suspect awaits mental health assessments
The man accused of stabbing a police officer and mowing down pedestrians on Jasper Avenue is still awaiting a mental health review.
Abdulahi Hasan Sharif, 30, appeared briefly in court via closed circuit television Wednesday from the Edmonton Remand Centre.
The delay is due to a lack of hospital beds required to assess Sharif’s fitness to stand trial and criminal responsibility.
Kim Goddard, with the Alberta Crown’s office, said she received a letter Tuesday from Alberta Health Services stating they could not admit Sharif until Dec. 14 due to a “critical bed shortage.”
A judge had ordered the mental health review last month.
Sharif stood with his hands folded Wednesday and did not speak. A Somali language interpreter was present to communicate the proceedings to Sharif. He will next appear in court Jan. 12.
Defence lawyer Karanpal Aujla had asked the court for the assessments, saying he had “significant” concerns about Sharif’s mental health. He requested two assessments, which the court granted: an assessment of fitness to stand trial and a not-criminally-responsible assessment.
The latter determines if at the time of an offence, the person had the capacity to understand his or her actions, to know right from wrong, or had the ability to control his or her behaviour.
Sharif faces five counts of attempted murder in connection with a Sept. 30 rampage where a car struck Edmonton police Const. Mike Chernyk, who was then stabbed, and later a rented truck ran down four pedestrians near Jasper Avenue. Police initially said they were investigating the attack as an act of terrorism, but no terrorism charges have been laid.
According to Alberta Health Services, the number of psychological assessments that Alberta judges have ordered for people accused or convicted of crimes has nearly doubled in the past three years.
AHS addiction and mental health executive director Mark Snaterse told Postmedia last month that the health authority expects to complete about 1,000 court-mandated assessments in total in 2017.
On Wednesday, Snaterse said there are five people on the wait list for court-mandated psychological assessments at Alberta Hospital Edmonton, the region’s psychiatric hospital.
In less complex cases, assessments can be done at the remand centre or prison where the person is incarcerated. A “small percentage” of people are transferred from the remand to Alberta Hospital for extended observation.
Aujla said that depending on the complexity of a case, mental health assessments can take up to several days.
He called the additional delays “somewhat concerning,” but added it “seems like (there’s) nothing AHS could have done under the circumstances, if they don’t have the beds.”
“I’d rather have them do an assessment that’s properly done and well-detailed without rushing,” he said.