Brain Injury (BI) is overrepresented among criminal-legal populations. However, little is known about how individuals with BI experience and manage court-mandated supervision conditions, or how criminal-legal professionals set and enforce conditions in practice. We will report the findings and recommendations from the first comprehensive qualitative study at the intersection of brain injury and community supervision. The presentation will overview challenges of conditions in the context of brain injury and interactions with criminal-legal professionals. The presentation will conclude with a discussion of BI-responsive approaches to setting and enforcing conditions.
Presenters:
Arthur McLuhan, PhD | Senior Research Associate MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, St. Michael’s Hospital, Unity Health Toronto
Dr. Arthur McLuhan is a senior research associate at MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, St. Michael’s Hospital, Toronto. A sociologist of culture and interaction, his research focuses on the patterns of interaction that shape involvements, identities, and inequities. One of his current projects is a study exploring the challenges of community supervision conditions among people with brain injury.
Madison Ford, MPH | Research Coordinator MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, St. Michael’s Hospital, Unity Health Toronto
Madison Ford is a research coordinator in the Justice and Equity Research Program at the Centre for Urban Health Solutions, St. Michael’s Hospital. She holds a Master of Public Health from Lund University and is currently managing various projects focused on supporting individuals with brain injury in the Ontario criminal legal system.
Flora I. Matheson, PhD | Research Scientist and Unity Health Toronto Chair in Homelessness, Housing, and Health MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, St. Michael’s Hospital, Unity Health Toronto
Dr. Flora Matheson is a scientist and Unity Health Toronto chair in Homelessness, Housing and Health. As a sociologist she works with a partner to provide brain injury education to criminal-legal professionals and advocate for bail and re-entry interventions that respond to brain injury. With Elizabeth Fry Society Toronto, they are implementing a pilot Brain Injury Court Navigation Pilot Program.
Presented by the Provincial Human Services and Justice Coordinating Committee on November 4, 2025.