A young man with severe intellectual disability and psychological disorders linked to an “appallingly” abusive childhood will spend more than two years in prison without facing trial, due to delays in Queensland’s mental health court.
The 21-year-old, anonymised in court documents as MZU, has been in custody since November 2022 on 72 charges including three serious assaults, burglary, obstructing police, car theft, fare evasion, public acts of indecency and breach of bail.
Last week the Queensland supreme court denied MZU’s application for bail, finding he posed an unacceptable risk to the community.
But chief justice Helen Bowskill also heard that it was “likely” a pending hearing in the mental health court, scheduled for December, would discontinue charges against him and find him permanently unfit for trial.
In her judgment, Bowskill described the man’s case as “tragic” and said that a delay in the mental health court process, which would cause him to be held in custody for more than two years on remand, was “profoundly regrettable”.
“The consequences of [such a delay] for an accused person are laid bare by this case,” Bowskill said.
Two psychiatrists have provided reports that would support MZU being found unfit for trial. Bowskill urged the Queensland director of public prosecutions to push for an uncontested hearing in the mental health court to take place “as soon as possible”.
The court heard that MZU “has a fairly substantial juvenile criminal history” and “a “longstanding relationship with mental health services since he was a child”.
He was diagnosed with reactive attachment disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder after having suffered an “appallingly prejudicial childhood” that included psychological and emotional abuse, neglect and trauma.
MZU is described in psychiatrist’s reports as having speech difficulties, a language impairment, and an intellectual impairment.
One such report, considered by Bowskill, found the primary cause of his offending to be “his developmental disabilities and his mental disorders”. The psychiatrist concluded MZU was not fit for trial.
The court heard that the 72 charges included three serious assaults of older people, including an alleged attack on a 63-year-old nurse on a Gold Coast tram. MZU allegedly attempted to steal her handbag, struck the woman and stomped on her head, leaving her unconscious and suffering serious injuries.
The DPP opposed bail, arguing MZU had “a propensity for violent offending”.
Prosecutors argued that the mental health court was “best placed to make an appropriate decision” about MZU’s future, including making a potential forensic order.
In denying MZU bail, Bowskill said: “This is unquestionably a tragic case of a young man who is himself the victim of an appallingly prejudicial childhood, which has caused severe impairment”.
“It would be far preferable if the matter could proceed as an uncontested [mental health court] hearing sooner than December 2024.
“I urge the [DPP] to take steps to bring this matter to the attention of the mental health court registry, with a view to requesting that it be dealt with as soon as possible.”
