Man deemed not criminally responsible for death of Toronto cop now living in community

TORONTO – The widow of a Toronto police officer killed in a rampage says she’s outraged the man deemed not criminally responsible for her husband’s death has been living in the community since April.

Christine Russell says she only learned this week that Richard Kachkar had been released from a mental health hospital in Whitby, Ont., to live in a nearby apartment.

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Kachkar had been at the Ontario Shores mental health facility since he was found not criminally responsible for hitting and killing Sgt. Ryan Russell with a stolen snow plow on Jan. 11 2011.

The Ontario Review Board, which decides if and how NCR patients should be detained, decided last year to allow Kachkar to live in the community in accommodation approved by the person in charge of his file.

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Christine Russell says a victim services worker told her Kachkar was discharged to an apartment in mid-April and is supervised by staff with the Canadian Mental Health Association who visit him twice daily during the week and once per day on the weekend.

She says Kachkar has a review board hearing scheduled for Thursday where he is expected to ask for 72-hour sojourns to travel within 150 kilometres of the hospital to visit his daughter.

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