Concerns raised after 2 missing from St. Joseph’s West 5th campus

There have been 25 escapes in the last three years at St. Joseph’s West 5th campus. The mental health hospital has raised concerns from the community after two men, who were detained in the high security forensics unit, escaped in less than two weeks.

38 year-old Jason Murray took off from two clinical staff who were supervising him, hopping a fence and leaving the West 5th campus where he was an involuntary patient.

On Wednesday, a week after he escaped, he turned himself in to Sarnia Police.

Nine days earlier 33 year-old Syna Lorn walked away from the hospital while he was out on an unsupervised day pass.

He was missing for more than 24 hours before calling hospital staff to come back.

Over the last 3 years St. Joe’s has had 25 incidents where people have escaped.

Gary Chaimowitz is a forensic psychologist at St. Joe’s, “Clearly we take each one of these very seriously but we did have 2 in 2 weeks which obviously raises some concerns for us.”

Both men were being detained in the secure Forensic Unit, being treated for severe mental health issues.

Lorn attacked a cab driver with a machete in 2006 and slashed his roommate’s head with a samurai sword in 2017.

Murray was carrying knives, a makeshift sword and screwdrivers when arrested in 2016.

The head of the Forensics Unit says in each case the patients had earned privileges to be out of the secured unit.

“Not one patient has escaped from the perimeter it is a very very secure environment.”

The hospital says of those 25 people who left none of them committed any crimes while out in the community and half of them turned themselves in.

The Forensics Unit has between 100 to 120 beds and handles only minimum and medium security patients. People found unfit to stand trial or not criminally responsible for their crimes.

“Having a service such as this even though there are issues is a way better solution than not.”

The hospital has met with police and Councillor Terry Whitehead after these recent escapes raised concerns within the community. The incidents are being reviewed.