System failed family of beheading victim: report

WINNIPEG — Family members of a young man who was decapitated and cannibalized on a Greyhound bus were poorly prepared for what they faced at a hearing this summer for his mentally ill killer, according to a review board.

The five-member panel released a written report this week providing reasons for its June decision to order Vince Li to remain locked up under heavy security at a Manitoba psychiatric facility.

The board also commented for the first time on its controversial decision to reject portions of several victim-impact statements from being read at the hearing.

"It is unfortunate indeed that individuals who see themselves and are seen by many as victims . . . and who have taken the time to write their earnest and heartfelt statements with the intention of reading those statements at the hearing, can find themselves in the position of having the admissibility and appropriateness of their statements challenged at the hearing, sometimes without advance warning," the board wrote.

"This can only exacerbate feelings of victimization."

Lawyers for Li convinced board members at the hearing to edit portions of several victim-impact statements submitted by 22-year-old Tim McLean's grieving loved ones. They said some elements didn't meet the required criteria because they spoke directly to Li, got into issues of punishment, spoke of the general impact on other people and recapped circumstances of the killing.

The review board said family members should have been given "additional assistance" prior to the hearing by Manitoba officials.

"We strongly urge the Victim Services Branch to review all statements with their authors to ensure, so far as it is reasonable, that the statements meet the statutory criteria for victim-impact statements," the board wrote.

"This review should take place before the statements are filed with the board. At the very least, persons who submit statements should be made aware of the possibility that there may be objections to the contents of or the admissibility of their statements if those statements are alleged to go beyond what is permitted under the Criminal Code."

Li attacked McLean while he slept on a Greyhound bus outside Portage la Prairie, Man., in July 2008. McLean was repeatedly stabbed, beheaded and dismembered in front of nearly three dozen witnesses.

Li was suffering from untreated schizophrenia and psychotic delusions at the time, which included hearing commands from God ordering him to kill McLean, whom he apparently viewed as a demon. Li was found not criminally responsible of murder during his trial in March.

"We are of the opinion that without the continued, close supervision provided by detention in hospital, Mr. Li would be a significant risk to the safety of the public, and that neither an absolute discharge nor a discharge upon conditions would be appropriate," the board wrote in the decision released Thursday.

The board ruled that Li should be sent to the high-risk ward at the Selkirk Mental Health Centre. Two peace officers must be assigned to guard Li if he needs to leave the secured facility for any reason, such as medical care or appointments.