Canada Judgment

Court of Appeal for Ontario

R. v. Hashi

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Professional case brief

Research organized from the available case record

Source document

01

Holding and result

The appeal was dismissed because the sentencing judge correctly concluded, based on psychiatric evidence and the appellant's extensive history of non-compliance and violent offending, that there was no reasonable expectation the appellant's risk could be controlled in the community and that an indeterminate sentence was therefore warranted.

Court disposition

Appeal dismissed

Orders

  • Appeal dismissed
  • Indeterminate sentence upheld

02

Material facts

Parties

His Majesty the King

Respondent Counsel: Andrew Cappell

Abdiassis Hashi

Appellant Counsel: Iris Liu

03

Procedural history

  1. Posture

    Criminal / Appeal From Sentence

04

Questions and positions

Legal issues

Party arguments

Applicant
The appellant argued that a fixed term sentence followed by an LTSO with appropriate conditions, including long-acting injectable antipsychotic medication and intensive supervision, could manage his risk and that an indeterminate sentence was not necessary.
Respondent
The Crown relied on psychiatric evidence that the appellant posed a high risk of violent reoffending driven primarily by personality disorder traits not amenable to medical treatment, and on the appellant's long history of non-compliance with medication and community supervision to justify an indeterminate sentence.

05

Court’s reasoning

  1. 01

    Criminal Code (Canada), dangerous offender provisions and related jurisprudence

    An indeterminate sentence is appropriate where an offender poses a high risk of serious violent reoffending that cannot be adequately controlled in the community.

  2. 02

    Criminal Code (Canada), long-term supervision order provisions and case law

    A long-term supervision order is appropriate only where there is a realistic expectation that conditions can control the offender's risk in the community.

  3. 03

    Principles of sentencing and expert evidence in criminal law

    Expert psychiatric evidence about treatability and risk is central to assessing whether community-based monitoring and treatment can mitigate future risk.

06

Ratio, limits and disposition

Ratio decidendi

The appeal was dismissed because the sentencing judge correctly concluded, based on psychiatric evidence and the appellant's extensive history of non-compliance and violent offending, that there was no reasonable expectation the appellant's risk could be controlled in the community and that an indeterminate sentence was therefore warranted.

Obiter and limits

  • Injectable antipsychotic medication alone would not meaningfully address risk where offending is driven by personality disorder traits
  • Achieving the necessary stability, abstinence and intense ongoing supervision for this appellant could only be achieved in a custodial setting given his history of non-cooperation and violence

Court disposition

Appeal dismissed

  • Appeal dismissed
  • Indeterminate sentence upheld

Source and reliance status

Court of Appeal for Ontario · 5 May 2026

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Judgment reading view

Judgment text

The complete available source text.

Source document

Court of Appeal for Ontario

Judgment· 5 May 2026

2026 ONCA 322

R. v. Hashi Collection Decisions of the Court of Appeal Date 2026-05-05 Neutral citation 2026 ONCA 322 Docket numbers COA-25-CR-0287 Judges Miller, Bradley; Paciocco, David M.; Wilson, Darla A. Subject Criminal Decision Content

COURT OF APPEAL FOR ONTARIO CITATION: R. v. Hashi, 2026 ONCA 322 DATE: 20260505 DOCKET: COA-25-CR-0287 Miller, Paciocco and Wilson JJ.A.

BETWEEN His Majesty the King Respondent and Abdiassis Hashi Appellant Iris Liu, for the appellant Andrew Cappell, for the respondent Heard: March 24, 2026 On appeal from the sentence imposed by Justice Gillian E. Roberts of the Superior Court of Justice on August 14, 2023, with reasons reported at 2023 ONSC 3809.

REASONS FOR DECISION [1] The appellant has a lengthy history of violent offending. He attacked the complainant with a knife and threatened to kill her. He was subsequently convicted of the index offences of aggravated assault and uttering a death threat. The Crown sought a dangerous offender designation, which the defence did not contest. At the sentencing hearing, defence counsel argued for a fixed sentence followed by a ten-year long-term supervision order (“LTSO”). The sentencing judge imposed an indeterminate sentence. The appellant appealed the indeterminate sentence and sought to substitute a fixed term with an LTSO. [2] At the hearing of the appeal, we dismissed the appeal with reasons to follow. These are our reasons. [3] The appellant argued that the sentencing judge erred in concluding that there was no reasonable expectation that the appellant’s risk could be controlled in the community, and that a fixed-term sentence with an LTSO would not be adequate. The appellant has been diagnosed with a personality disorder with antisocial traits, schizoaffective disorder, substance use disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Among the evidence before the trial judge was a psychiatric report that concluded that the appellant posed a high risk of re-offending violently. The appellant’s central argument on appeal was that an LTSO with appropriate conditions, such as a

requirement that the appellant receive long lasting anti-psychotic medication by injection, could effectively manage the appellant’s risk. [4] The sentencing judge rejected this argument and did not err in so doing. The sentencing judge found that the appellant’s offending was driven by multiple factors, and not primarily by his mental illness. Even if the appellant consented to taking injectable medication – a treatment which he had historically refused – it would not meaningfully address his risk of violent reoffending. In the opinion of the psychiatrist who testified for the Crown, the appellant’s pattern of offending was driven more by his personality disorders, which are not amenable to medical treatment. Furthermore, the appellant has proven unmanageable in the community, has never cooperated with community supervision, and has a long history of offending while subject to probation or judicial release. The sentencing judge noted the psychiatrist’s evidence of the appellant’s limited insight into his disorders and history of violence, his lack of empathy, and the absence of any desire to change. He was characterized as generally uncooperative unless he perceived some short-term gain, had a history of non-compliance with medication, had never taken advantage of attempts from hospital staff to help him, had never complied with community supervision, and could not be relied on to self-report. [5] In addition to medication, the psychiatrist testified, the appellant required a more stable lifestyle, abstinence from substance abuse, and intense and on-going supervision. The sentencing judge made no error in concluding that for the appellant, these conditions could only be achieved in a custodial setting.

DISPOSITION [6] For these reasons, the appeal is dismissed. “B.W. Miller J.A.” “David M. Paciocco J.A.” “D.A. Wilson J.A.”

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Authorities

Authorities used by the court

Cases, legislation, regulations, and constitutional provisions identified in the available record.

Criminal Code (Canada), dangerous offender and long-term supervision order provisions

Legislation

Legislation referenced in the available case record.

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