Psychiatric patient to be charged for hospital fire

Aug 20, 2008 News

– suspect’s mother says son mentally unfit to stand trial

“If they charge my son, they have to charge the woman who kill the patient in the Observation Ward. “If they putting mad people before the court, then they have to put all of them…”

Psychiatric patient Leonard Nelson is to be charged for allegedly setting the fire which destroyed a section of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation last Wednesday.
But his mother, Abiola Nelson, believes that her son is mentally incompetent to appear in court.
And she questioned why the female psychiatric patient who allegedly strangled mentally handicapped patient, Natasha Vieira earlier this month is not being charged also.
Ms. Nelson has been attempting to have her son admitted to the Psychiatric Hospital at New Amsterdam, ever since he was detained in connection with the fire, which razed both Psychiatric Wards.
A magistrate had signed a temporary court order for him to be sent to the institution but this has been ignored by the police and hospital authorities, she charged.
Nelson was taken to the psychiatrist at GPHC on Monday and his mother alleged that she showed psychiatrist, Dr. Bhiro Harry, the court order that the magistrate had signed.
She alleged that Dr. Harry did not look at the document, but spoke privately with the police ranks who had escorted her son to the hospital.
She also claimed that afterwards, the psychiatrist informed her son that he had to go with the police.
According to Ms. Nelson, her son threw himself on the floor and began stripping off his clothes. She said that he also attacked her, but the policemen eventually restrained him.
Afterwards, the ranks took her son back to the lockups at the East Ruimveldt Police Outpost.
When asked why he was still being detained despite the court order to have him institutionalized, the ranks reportedly told Ms. Nelson that the decision was in the hands of a senior police officer from the Alberttown Station.
Mrs. Nelson said she returned to the Alberttown Police Station yesterday and was informed by the rank that her son would be charged.
The distraught woman pointed out that 20-year-old Leonard Nelson has been “in and out” of the GPHC’s Psychiatric Ward for at least two months.
During this time, Nelson tried to hang himself on two occasions and was also attacked and beaten by another patient, she said.
“He is a mentally ill person. If you charge my son, then you would have to charge the woman who kill the other woman (Natasha Vieira). They would also have to charge the patient who beat my son. If you putting mad people before the court, you have to charge all of them.”
The woman also expressed concern that her son has received no medication since he has been in custody.
Hospital Administrator Michael Khan referred all comments to Dr. Bhiro Harry when asked about the cases involving Nelson and Vieira.
However, Kaieteur News was unable to contact the psychiatrist.
On August 2, Natasha Vieira, a mentally handicapped woman, was strangled by another patient in the female Observation Ward.
The suspect in Vieira’s death was never placed in police custody and has not been charged.
Police sources had told Kaieteur News that the suspect was mentally ill and therefore could not be charged.