Andre Noel Denny, the man charged with
the murder of gay activist Raymond Taavel, has a history of mental
illness.
Taavel was beaten to death trying to
break up a fight between two men outside Menz, a gay bar located in
downtown Halifax, Canada. One of the men, ostensibly Denny, turned
on Taavel and viciously beat him. Police arrived at the scene at
about 2:40AM and found Taavel lying in the street. Police used dogs
to track down Denny to a nearby alley.
The 32-year-old Denny has been charged
with second-degree murder.
During a brief court hearing on
Wednesday, Denny, a psychiatric patient at a nearly facility, was
ordered to undergo a 30-day psychiatric assessment.
Government officials have also launched
a probe into the circumstances that led Denny to be temporarily
released from the facility.
Lawyer Pavel Boubnov, who has
represented Denny in the past, told the National
Post that he never should have been released from the
hospital.
“In my opinion, the hospital should
be a bit more careful with [letting Denny go on unescorted leave].”
Boubnov added that “there is nothing
in [Denny's] history, which could be indicative that he would commit
a hate crime.”
More than 500 mourners attended a vigil
in honor of Taavel's memory on Tuesday.