Man who set fire to Osoyoos RCMP detachment will try to prove he’s not psychotic

A psychotic man who was found not criminally responsible for attempting to burn down the Osoyoos RCMP detachment has won the right to appeal the verdict after spending more time in psychiatric custody than if he’d been sentenced to a regular jail.

According to a May 25 BC Court of Appeal decision, Joseph Manuel McArthur-Pereira argued there was a lack of procedural fairness and insufficient reasons when, in 2019, a court ruled that he was acutely psychotic and didn’t understand that what he did was wrong.

McArthur-Pereira argued that in the last seven years, he’d spent more time in a psychiatric facility than if he’d been deemed fit to stand trial and sentenced to a regular jail.

The case dates back to 2019, when McArthur-Pereira poured gas on the Osoyoos RCMP detachment. After lighting the fire, he left, but returned soon afterwards with cardboard and a bundle of wood and asked police to help him fuel the fire.

McArthur-Pereira told police, “I’m not going back in there. You guys kill people in there.” The fire was quickly put out.

A psychiatrist’s assessment was submitted to the court.

“It is not clear to what extent this has been caused by drug use. Nevertheless, the chronicity, tendency to recur and the negative impact on his social and occupational functioning suggest that this may not be explained by substance use disorder but a primary mental disorder. Therefore, Mr. McArthur-Pereira should be regarded by the Court as mentally disordered,” the report read.

In BC, if a person is found to be not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder, the file is passed to the BC Review Board. While a regular jail sentence has an end date, under the BC Review Board, a person will have to prove they are well enough to be released.

The decision said McArthur-Pereira spent two years in psychiatric custody before being released. However, after being released, he breached his conditions and was returned to psychiatric custody several times.

In 2022, he crashed into a motorhome, killing the driver and was convicted of driving without due care or attention. The Crown wanted jail time, but he was already in psychiatric custody by the time of the sentencing.

The decision said McArthur-Pereira had 30 days to appeal the not criminally responsible ruling, and his appeal came six years late.

However, Justice Barbara Fisher said McArthur-Pereira was assessed very shortly after the offence with limited information, which may have resulted in a miscarriage of justice.

“(He) also seeks to rely on fresh evidence, being his assessments by the Review Board since the Not Criminally Responsible due to a Medical Disorder verdict, which he says continue to show his diagnosis is unspecified,” the Justice said. “The question of mental disorder is a legal one, albeit one with a medical dimension.”

The Justice said the source of a psychosis has to be identified, and at the time of the offence, McArthur-Pereira’s mental health was precarious but largely undiagnosed.

While McArthur-Pereira might not be successful, the Justice allowed him permission to appeal the ruling that said he was psychotic and not responsible for his actions.