Saskatoon family says health-care system failed their son in months leading to fatal February stabbing
CBC
Bryan Hamp says his son Thomas Hamp's girlfriend sent a five-page timeline chronicling Thomas's deteriorating mental health the day before she was fatally stabbed.
Thomas is charged with second-degree murder. Police identified the victim as his girlfriend Emily Sanche.
Bryan said Sanche, a 25-year-old University of Saskatchewan psychology grad, hoped that her detailed outline would help get Thomas admitted to hospital and assessed for his increasingly bizarre behaviour.
Thomas's parents, Bryan and Sandi, were concerned with his escalating delusions and frustrated by their inability to get the medical help they believed he needed — both before and after Sanche's stabbing.
Thomas spent more than a month on suicide watch at the Saskatoon jail after the stabbing — even though the court had ordered him sent to the province's main psychiatric hospital — because there was not enough space.
CBC reached out to Sanche's parents, who provided a statement.
"While we are eager to understand the events that led to our daughter's tragic death, we believe it is inappropriate for anyone, including the CBC and us, to comment until evidence from the police investigation becomes available," the statement said.
Sanche prepared the timeline document on Saturday, Feb. 19, with Bryan planning to take his 25-year-old son to the emergency room at Royal University Hospital the next day. It would have been their son's third ER visit since December.
A text to Bryan from Sanche, timestamped 4:48 p.m. CST on Feb. 19, indicates she had typed up the document and included a Google drive link to where it could be viewed.
But Bryan never got to take his son to the hospital.
"It was early Sunday morning when I got the call," Bryan said in an interview.
"Whatever was happening, it happened. And somehow she dialed my number and I didn't hear her, but I could hear Thomas screaming in the background that they're out to get him. 'They're over there, help me get them.' And that will stay in my memory forever."
Bryan called 911 and went to the young couple's place on Main Street. Both had already been taken to hospital. In addition to attacking his partner, Thomas had also slashed his own neck and stabbed himself in the chest, Bryan said.
Sanche, who had been one year into a Master of Counselling psychology degree program, died 25 days later. Thomas was initially charged with aggravated assault, but police said Monday the charge had been upgraded to second-degree murder.
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