Winnipeg hospital attack survivor says she is 'forever changed' at hearing for man who killed parents

Family ofCandyce Szkwarek wept as she told Winnipeg courtshe no longer feels safe, detailing the devastation of no longer being able to do her job and how she was "forever changed" by the stabbing attack she suffered at the hands of Trevor Farley two years ago on the same day Farley fatally stabbed his parents.

"I no longer feel safe anywhere,"Szkwarek said Tuesday in Manitoba Court of King's Bench, where Farley,39, was found not criminally responsible for the crimes he committed on Oct. 27, 2021.

"This is debilitating and exhausting."

Justice Ken Champagne found Farley not criminally responsible due to a mental disorder for killinghis parents before driving to Seven Oaks Hospital, where he previously worked,and turning a knife on Szkwarek, his former supervisor.

Farley was charged with first-degree murder in the deathof his father, Stuart Farley, and second-degree murder in the death of his mother, Judy Swain.

He was also charged with attempted murder after stabbingSzkwarekabout 20 times at Seven Oaks Hospital.

At a hearingMonday,Crown attorneys and Farley's defence team jointly recommended he be found notcriminally responsible.

A report from a team of psychiatric and psychological experts suggested Farley was suffering from an atypical form of bipolar disorder when he committed the attacks, featuring manic episodes and depressive episodeswith anxious distress and psychoticfeatures.

They said he was experiencing "religious-based" delusions and thought he was a prophet sent by God to "cut the contamination" from the souls of his parents andSzkwarekin order to save them.

The team also relied on reports documenting similar symptoms byhealth-care workers at various points in the days leading up to the attack, when Farley sought mental health treatment at St. Boniface Hospital, the Health Sciences Centre and theMental Health Crisis Response Centre.

'High-risk accused'

On Tuesday, Crown attorneyShannon Benevidesrequested Justice Champagne designate Farley a "high-risk accused."

The rare designation has never been sought in Manitoba in a case of someone being found not criminally responsible, Benevidessaid.If granted, the decision would ultimately be sent to a review board.

Ahigh-risk designationcarriesmandatory detention in a hospital setting, whichcan only be revoked by a superior court justice. If the designation is made, Farley would only be allowed to leave the hospital facility under supervision for appointments.

Szkwarek's daughter, one of four people who gave victim impact statements Tuesday, implored Champagne to do whatever he could to ensure her mother can enjoy as many years as possible in peace.

Jackie Motoch said her mother "lives in fear every day that as soon as he is able to, he will come back and finish what he started."

Farley checkedhimself into the crisis response centre the night before the attacks. By the next morning, apsychiatric team decided to have him involuntarily admitted there.

However,he walked out of the facility hours later and droveto his father's home in Winnipeg. Farley stabbed his father repeatedly, before heading to his mother's in New Bothwell, southeast of Winnipeg, and killing her.

Following that, he stopped at St. Boniface Hospital looking for help, then visited the crisis response centre again, but turned around and leftmoments later, court heard.

He then drove to Seven Oaks Hospital and stabbedSzkwareknumerous times. Police captured him just outside, after he was tackled and chased by a doctor there.

Police took statements from over a dozen witnesses of the hospital attack,two of whom Lori Schellenberg and Heloise Buhler read victim impact statements Tuesday.

Both said they live with post-traumatic stress disorder that has greatly impacted their quality of life.

WATCH |Szkwarek on whyshe felt compelled to hug Farley's siblings after court:

Attack survivor 'knows how hard it must be' for family of man who tried to kill her after murdering his parents

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After giving an emotional victim impact statement, Candyce Szkwarek said she felt compelled to cross the courtroom gallery and give a hug to family of Trevor Farley, the man who attempted to murder her on Oct. 27 after he killed his parents Judy Swain and Stuart Farley.

Schellenberg described the "screaming and chaos" and "blood everywhere" as she entered the scene and provided crisis management.

"I don't believe I will ever be the same person," saidSchellenberg, a registered psychiatric nurse who has been ina management role at Seven Oaks for almost 15 years.

Buhler, then a director of clinical services for renal care at Seven Oaks, said shewent into shock that day.

Both said they have struggled to re-integrate back into the workplace.

"I had always thought of a hospital as being a universal safe zone. That was shattered," saidBuhler.

Szkwarek hugs Farley's family

Court heard Szkwarek was hospitalized for about four months and required several surgeries. She experienced kidney failure andrequired dialysis for a time.

Her husband,whom shecaredfor after he had a stroke several years ago, had to be placed in a care home after the attack. His condition deteriorated there and he eventually died.

She hasn't been able to return the job she once loved, she told court during her victim impact statement.

Szkwareksaid she is haunted by the attack and much of her life these days revolves around followup appointments.

She believes Farley needs to be designated a high-risk offender and kept under close watch in a medical facility.

After her statement in court,Szkwarek walked across the courtroom gallery andhugged one of Farley's brothers.

"I just felt the need to tell them that it's OK, because I know how hard it must be for them," Szkwarek said after court. "That's just who I am. I couldn't have left there without talking to them."

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Duration 2:17

Candyce Szkwarek, who survived an attack by Trevor Farley at Seven Oaks Hospital in 2021, gave an emotional victim impact statement in court on Tuesday after a judge found Farley not criminally responsible due to a mental disorder.