Councillor may go to mental health court
Howard Shore, the Markham politician charged with stealing a cellphone from his Thornhill gym, may have his case diverted to a special courtroom designed for criminal defendants with mental health problems. The 47-year-old rookie councillor and motivational speaker was charged on Nov. 23 with theft and possession under $5,000, accused of stealing an iphone from the Thornhill Fitness Centre. As revealed by the Toronto Star in December, Shore’s theft charge is just the latest in a string of brushes with the law, including a 2008 conviction in the United States for theft and stalking. At Newmarket court Wednesday, Shore’s lawyer said his client’s case has been adjourned to Monday, when he will appear in a community treatment courtroom. Edward Prutschi said he hopes to have Shore accepted into a special program for defendants whose mental health or addiction problems have contributed to their alleged offences. “On the face of it, it’s not necessarily dramatically different,” Prutschi said outside the courthouse. “The primary difference is that the Crown attorney and the judges are fully aware and cognizant of . . . the underlying factors that connect to the offence.”
“In this case, obviously, the central element is going to be mental health.”
If accepted into the program, it is possible Shore may never have to go to trial, Prutschi said, but that will be up to the Crown.
Shore has refused to be interviewed by the Star about his past criminal charges or his mental health problems. In December, two days before the Star published its article, Shore posted a statement on his website announcing he suffers from mental health issues and that the Star planned on publicizing some “terribly embarrassing incidents” caused by his illness. He told other local newspapers that he suffers from depression as a result of being bullied as a young child.
Prutschi said he expects the Crown will decide Monday whether to accept Shore into the community health court program, which he believes is “tailor-made” for defendants like his client. If accepted, Prutschi said, Shore will enter a six- to nine-month program designed to treat his underlying mental health problems, after which the Crown will decide how to proceed.