HALIFAX — A Nova Scotia judge says a mentally ill man who killed his wife is entitled to the proceeds of her life insurance policy because he was found not criminally responsible for her death.
Justice Frank Edwards of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia says Richard Maidment — diagnosed with schizophrenia seven years ago — was not morally responsible for Sarabeth Forbes’ death in 2017.
The judge said Maidment was not found guilty and is not a criminal.
At the conclusion of his trial, which Edwards also presided over, Maidment was declared not criminally responsible and was confined to the East Coast Forensic Hospital in the Halifax area.
At the time, Edwards said Maidment could not be held responsible for what he had done because his mental disorder had rendered him incapable of appreciating the nature of his actions or knowing they were wrong.
In his most recent decision this week, Edwards said there is a public policy rule that says criminals should not benefit from their crimes, but he said that rule does not apply in this case.
Citing a decision from the Supreme Court of Canada, Edwards said a person found not criminally responsible because of a mental disorder is not to be punished and is instead to be treated with dignity.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 17, 2020.
The Canadian Press
