Matthew de Grood, accused in Calgary stabbings, awaits 2nd psychiatric report

A psychiatric assessment report forMatthewdeGroodto determine if he couldbe held criminally responsible is not yet ready.

The 23-year-old is accused of stabbing five people to death at a university party in northwest Calgary in April.

• Matthew de Grood, Calgary stabbings accused, to undergo more psychiatric tests

De Groodfaces five counts of first-degree murder.He was being held at the Alberta Hospital in Edmonton for the psychiatric assessment.

He appeared in a Calgary court briefly via closed-circuit television from the Edmonton Remand Centre on Thursday.

De Groodstood motionless as the court discussed why asecond psychiatric report ordered for him has been delayed.His lawyer Allan Fay told the court the assessment is done, but the report is not ready.

Itwas ordered last month to help determine whether he could be found criminally responsible for the killings ifconvicted.

"It will deal with interviews of my client psychiatric testing of him," said Fay."I know his parents were interviewed as well."

The report is being done by a forensic psychologist.

Preliminary hearing set for March

"It's important to know though that this report is opinion evidence from one witness," said Crown prosecutor NeilWiberg. "At the end of the day, the judge or the jury has the final say in determining issues such as this."

He said a preliminary hearing has been scheduled for next March.

Wiberg said extensions for assessments arecommon and was likely because ofthe case load at the Alberta Hospitaland the material the reporthasto consider.

De Groodhas already been found fit to stand trial on the basis of one mental health report.Hewas charged afterthe April 15 stabbings at a party near the University of Calgary to mark the endof the school year.

Five young people were killed in the early-morning attack:

• Lawrence Hong, 27.
• Joshua Hunter, 23.
• Kaitlin Perras, 23.
• Zackariah Rathwell, 21.
• Jordan Segura, 22.

The Crownasked for the follow-up report last month when de Groodappeared in court in person for the first time. A docket judge ordered him to betransferred to Edmonton for the30-day psychiatric assessment.

De Grood will now be transferred back to Calgarybut will remain in psychiatric care. He will appear in court again on Sept. 26 via closed-circuit television from the Calgary Remand Centre.

His lawyer says he is currently on medication but is becoming more lucid about the events that took place that day in April.

"When I last spoke to him he seems to be doing alright as well as one can expect under these circumstances," said Fay.