Colton Clarkin fled Hillsborough Hospital while walking in grounds with his father, inquest hears

Warning: This story deals with suicide. If you or someone you know has been struggling with mental health, you can find resources for help at the bottom of this story.

The inquest into the death of Colton Clarkin began in Charlottetown Wednesday — painting a picture of how the 27-year-old Emyvale man was able to die by suicide while classified as an involuntary patient at Hillsborough Hospital.

Clarkin was admitted to Health P.E.I. psychiatric facility in September 2022 after he was found not criminally responsible for several offences. His record to that date included charges related to weapons, an armed robbery and an assault. 

The family was told he would get the help he so clearly needed, but as his mother Maggie Clarkin said as the inquest got underway, "319 days later, our son was dead."

His father Alan Clarkin issued a plea for the inquest jury to recommend better treatment for addictions on P.E.I., saying that if nothing was done, "we are going to continue to lose loved ones at a growing and alarming rate."

He added: "Colton was not some forgotten addict that nobody cared about. He was loved deeply."

The six-person jury heard from the first four witnesses Wednesday: a Nova Scotia-based medical examiner who performed the post-mortem exam, two Health P.E.I. staff based out of Hillsborough Hospital, and an Ontario-based judge who served as a legal expert.

In July 2023, Clarkin had standing permission to leave the treatment facility to attend addiction treatment programs and to go on two-hour visits off-site with relatives and friends.

On the morning of July 28, he travelled to his day program at the Provincial Addictions Treatment Facility in Mount Herbert. But after the session, staff told him he could not return until the next 21-day program started in August because he had made a female participant in the program uncomfortable. 

The inquest heard this was not the first time Clarkin had exhibited erratic or inappropriate behaviour in a group treatment program. 

Clarkin then returned to Hillsborough Hospital and told staff he was feeling anxious. Because it had taken him so long to return to the facility by taxi, he was tested for drugs. The results came back negative.

Earlier that day, nursing staff had noticed Clarkin had shaved his facial hair, which changed his appearance. He had also taken all of his personal belongings with him when he left the facility on a two-hour visit the day before and did not bring them back when he returned. 

All this sent off alarm bells for the nurse who testified Wednesday, saying he thought Clarkin might be intending to flee the facility — something he had done before.

The nurse called the attending psychiatrist and suggested Clarkin's clearance level and privileges should be downgraded, something that can happen at any time if staff suspect something is awry, so that patients can't leave the facility.