Lawyer, mental health advocate to defend Waterford Hospital patient accused of murder

St. John's criminal defence lawyer and mental health advocate Mark Gruchy will defend the Waterford Hospital man accused of murdering a fellow patient.

Thomas Parsley, 30, was officially charged on Wednesday, following the death of a 66-year-old man on Dec. 23. 

Police say Parsley violently attacked the man with a weapon on Dec. 19 at the Waterford Hospital, where court documents say Parsley is involuntarily under the care of a psychiatrist.

He was initially charged with assault with a weapon and attempted murder, but those were changed after the man died.

In an earlier appearance this week, a judge ruled Parsley was fit to stand trial for murder, but his health-care providers wrote that they expect him to remain at the mental health facility indefinitely.

Gruchy appeared in court for Parsley on Wednesday. He told Judge James Walsh he needs more time to prepare the case, as he was only assigned to it on Tuesday.

October assault charge

The assault and murder charges against Parsley are not his first encounter with the law. He was charged with assault with a weapon and uttering threats toward a nurse at the Waterford Hospital on Oct. 15. 

In the wake of the man's death, Chandra Kavanagh, CEO of the Canadian Mental Health Association in Newfoundland and Labrador, wants to know what safety policies were in place at the Waterford, and whether or not they were followed.

"Unfortunately, when tragic incidents like this happen, we can end up in very stigmatizing conversations about mental health," said Kavanagh. 

Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services is investigating.

Parsley's case is due back in court on Feb. 7. 

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