Stabbing of child in Halifax reflects lack of mental health care access, expert says

CITYnews halifax / By The Canadian Press

A mother’s lament that she had been desperately seeking treatment for her daughter, who was charged this week with stabbing a child in Halifax, points to the need for better mental health care.

That’s the opinion of Anita Szigeti, a Toronto-based legal expert in mental health and the law.

Nineteen-year-old Elliott Chorny was charged with attempted murder after a six-year-old boy was stabbed multiple times on Sunday on a Halifax sidewalk.

Szigeti says that while she can’t comment on the specifics of the case, she says it is extremely rare that someone experiencing a mental health crisis causes harm to another person.

Related:

• Halifax police say condition of six-year-old stabbing victim has improved
• Police identify suspect; 6-year-old remains in hospital after stabbing

But Szigeti says the best way to prevent such violent incidents would be to ensure people have access to voluntary mental health treatment.

The lawyer says that there is a lack of community-based mental health care in Canada, and that some people who need support and reach out for help are turned away.

Andrea Hancock, who is Chorny’s mother, said Monday on Facebook that her daughter was having a “psychotic break” when the child was stabbed. Hancock says her heart goes out to the boy and his family, and that Chorny is “severely unwell” and that the family had been trying for years to get her treatment.

“Elliott did not get the help that she needed and the little boy has suffered needlessly despite our efforts to try and protect the community,” she said in the post, which was confirmed by a friend of Hancock’s to be authentic.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 26, 2025.