“Mitchell — mom’s here. We love you, honey.”
Trudy Hickey tried to comfort her son as he was led into court in shackles on Wednesday afternoon, facing serious charges in a situation that has changed multiple lives forever.
Mitchell Rose, 32, stands accused of two counts of attempted murder, three counts of assault with a weapon and three counts of assault causing bodily harm, in relation to attacks on three residents of a St. John’s apartment building on Monday.
According to his family, Rose has schizophrenia and has been in a state of psychosis without the help he desperately needs since being discharged from a crucial program in recent months.
“We knew something bad was going to happen,” said his sister, Janaya Rose. “We never thought it was going to be someone else being harmed. We thought it was going to be Mitchell being harmed.”
Rose had been on a community treatment order — a designation issued by a psychiatrist that can provide mandatory and involuntary care to a person with severe mental illnesses.
Janaya Rose said the designation allowed her family to call an assertive community treatment (ACT) team during times of crisis, and the team could administer involuntary care if necessary.
The family said they noticed a severe decline in Rose’s mental health on Friday. They called the ACT team, only to find out Rose had been released from his community treatment order without their knowledge months earlier.
Without the order, the family was told the ACT team did not have the authority to respond.
Rose’s family urged him to go to the hospital on Monday, but he refused.
When he wouldn’t go, they called the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and were met by the mental health crisis unit.
When Rose wouldn’t let them inside his apartment, Janaya Rose said the team waited outside and urged him to call 811 if he needed mental health support.
Rose continued to spiral, until the worst-case scenario happened.
“We got a call Monday evening that Mitchell had been arrested,” Janaya Rose said. “I found out on social media the next morning that he was charged with attempted murder and that he was in jail.”
Little is known about the specifics of the attacks. Residents told CBC News they heard screaming inside the building just after 6:30 p.m. NT. One person said they opened their door after a few minutes and found a pool of blood in the hallway.
The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary said three people were sent to hospital, with one woman being listed in critical condition on Tuesday.
Janaya Rose said her brother was a social young man who excelled at basketball and aspired to be a firefighter. His mental health took a turn when he was 19, leading to a post-traumatic stress disorder diagnosis at first, and eventually a schizophrenia diagnosis.
“The last time he was in the hospital, he wasn’t allowed to be discharged until he had a community treatment order,” Rose’s mother said. “The community treatment order is what allowed him to go out and live on his own and live a half-normal life.”
Family of man accused of attempted murder says he was discharged from mental health order without their knowledge
The order meant he was mandated to take a monthly injection, which kept his mental health more stable than he’d been before. But the family said Rose was released from the powers of the order because of “non-engagement” with the program, unbeknownst to them.
“We believe it was negligence,” Hickey said.
“It’s a huge, dangerous gap in the mental health system that needs to be filled before this happens to another family,” Janaya Rose said. “Multiple lives are shattered. People are in the hospital. Mitchell’s life is over because of these gaps.”
CBC News has requested comment from Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services. This story will be updated with a response when one is received.
Rose’s court appearance was brief on Wednesday.
The judge heard Rose refused to take part in the psychiatric assessment that was ordered a day earlier, and ordered him to spend the next seven days on the forensic unit of the psychiatric hospital in St. John’s.
His mother and sister said that’s a small win in a sea of misery, after he spent the previous two nights in a holding cell.
“For the last two days, Mitchell has still been under a state of psychosis in a jail cell when he really needed medical treatment,” Janaya Rose said.
Rose is due back in court next Wednesday for the results of the second attempt at a psychiatric evaluation to determine if he is fit to stand trial.
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