Re Sorensen - [2010] QMHC 15

MENTAL HEALTH COURT

CITATION:

Re Sorensen [2010] QMHC 15

PARTIES:

REFERENCE BY THE DIRECTOR OF MENTAL HEALTH IN RESPECT OF BENJAMIN ANTON SORENSEN

PROCEEDING NO:

No 0215/2008

DELIVERED ON:

18 June 2010

DELIVERED AT:

Brisbane

HEARING DATE:

24 July 2009, 16 April 2010

JUDGE:

Philippides J

ASSISTING PSYCHIATRISTS:

Dr E N McVie
Dr J Chalk

FINDINGS AND ORDER:

1.    That in respect of the charge of driving without a licence:

(a) the defendant was not of unsound mind as described in Schedule 2 of the Mental Health Act 2000 (Qld);

(b)     the defendant is fit for trial;

(c)   the proceedings continue according to law.

2.    That in respect of the charges of attempted murder and serious assault on person 60 years and over:

(a) the defendant was of unsound mind as described in Schedule 2 of the Mental Health Act 2000 (Qld);

(b)     the defendant be detained as a forensic patient at the Toowoomba Area Network Authorised Mental Health Service;

(c)   Approval of limited community treatment in the nature of escorted leave on and off the grounds on the following conditions:

(i) That the patient is to remain under the escort of the health service staff member/s nominated by the authorised psychiatrist for the duration of the limited community treatment;
(ii) For the purposes of escorted limited community treatment, that the patient comply with the directions of the nominated staff member/s for the duration of the limited community treatment.

CATCHWORDS:

MENTAL HEALTH – DECLARATION OR FINDING OF MENTAL ILLNESS OR INCAPACITY – where defendant charged with attempted murder and serious assault on person 60 years and over – where defendant floridly psychotic – where defendant was deprived of capacity to know he ought not to do the acts – where differing psychiatric opinion as to the nature of the defendant’s diagnosis – whether defendant suffered from drug induced psychosis or schizophreniform psychosis – whether intoxication contributed to any extent to the defendant’s state of mind resulting in deprivation of capacity – whether defendant was of unsound mind as defined in Schedule 2 of the Mental Health Act 2000 (Qld) at the relevant time

MENTAL HEALTH – DECLARATION OR FINDING OF MENTAL ILLNESS OR INCAPACITY – where defendant charged with driving without a licence – where no clinical evidence that defendant was of unsound mind – where defendant is fit for trial

Mental Health Act 2000 (Qld), s 269, Schedule 2

R vClough [2010] QCA 120

Re Plant, unreported, QMHT (27 March 1998)

COUNSEL:

Mr S Hamlyn-Harris for the Defendant
Mr J Tate for the Director of Mental Health
Mr S Vasta for the Director of Public Prosecutions (Qld)

SOLICITORS:

Robertson O’Gorman Solicitors for the Defendant
Crown Law for the Director of Mental Health
The Director of Public Prosecutions (Qld)

PHILIPPIDES J:

The defendant is charged with attempted murder and serious assault on person 60 years and over on 29 July 2008. He is also charged with driving without a licence on 27 May 2008. The issue of the…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Re Sorensen

Details

AGLC: Re Sorensen [2010] QMHC 15
Case: [2010] QMHC 15
Decision Date: 18 June 2010

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of Re Sorensen involved the defendant, Sorensen, who was charged with attempted murder and serious assault on a person over 60 years old. The defendant was floridly psychotic at the time of the incident. The court had to determine whether Sorensen was deprived of the capacity to know he ought not to do the acts he was charged with, and if he was of unsound mind as defined in Schedule 2 of the Mental Health Act 2000 (Qld). The court also needed to consider whether Sorensen's condition was due to drug-induced psychosis, schizophreniform psychosis, or a combination of intoxication and psychosis.

The court examined the differing psychiatric opinions on Sorensen's diagnosis, weighing the evidence presented by experts. The primary legal issue was whether Sorensen's mental state at the time of the offence resulted in a deprivation of his capacity, rendering him unfit to stand trial. This involved assessing the extent to which any intoxication may have contributed to his mental state. The court was tasked with applying the statutory definition of unsoundness of mind in determining Sorensen's fitness for trial.

The court concluded that Sorensen was of unsound mind at the relevant time due to his florid psychosis, which deprived him of the capacity to know he ought not to commit the acts. The court found that Sorensen's condition was consistent with a schizophreniform psychosis rather than drug-induced psychosis. The intoxication, while a factor, did not entirely account for his state of mind. Therefore, Sorensen was declared unfit to stand trial for the charges of attempted murder and serious assault. The court also noted that there was no clinical evidence that Sorensen was of unsound mind in relation to the charge of driving without a licence, and he was deemed fit for trial in respect of that charge.

Orders