The man who attacked three people with a machete at a Fredericton college in 2014 will be allowed to remain in public, the New Brunswick Review Board ruled Wednesday after a hearing to monitor his reintegration into the community.

Luke Powers, 36, moved to Moncton late last year after receiving a conditional release from the Restigouche Hospital Centre in Campbellton following a lengthy hospital stay.

The review board decided against the Crown's suggestion that Powers not receive a discharge, but it said he remains a "significant threat" and "further monitoring is required."

"The current discharge conditions, for the most part, meet his needs and addresses public safety," said board chair Cheryl Johnson, reading from the decision.

Three people at Eastern College, one instructor and two students, were hospitalized with injuries ranging from minor to serious after Powers attacked them with a 43-centimetre machete-style knife. The instructor required surgery.

Powers spent more than four years at the Restigouche Hospital Centre after being found not criminally responsible for the attack. He was granted a release from the secure facility in December of last year.

In Campbellton, the former soldier was treated for anxiety, depression, a neurological disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. Part of the PTSD diagnosis is related to an incident during a training exercise in the military during which Powers was seriously injured.

Wednesday's hearing was scheduled when Powers was granted a release to assess his progress and the state of his mental health.

'He needs to continue to see me'

His social worker, Manuel Reyes, told the review board Powers is progressing well since his release and agreed that continued treatment is best.

"He needs to continue to see me," Reyes said.

He said one issue Powers is struggling with since his release is limited access to his children — something Powers said he hopes to change in the future.

Luke Powers, pictured at the December hearing, spent more than four years at the Restigouche Hospital Centre in Campbellton after being found not criminally responsible for an attack on two fellow students and an instructor at Eastern College in Fredericton in January 2014. He now lives in Moncton. (Tori Weldon/CBC)

Reyes said the two have a good therapeutic relationship.

"If he's not feeling well, he'll text me," he said.

Powers said he has a "huge support system" and that he would continue with his treatment team even if the board had loosened his conditions or granted him a full release.

He said he'd like to work in occupational safety and plans to enroll in college soon.

In the five months since his release, Powers enrolled in a first aid course, a driver's course and a mental health first aid course before travelling to Halifax to take a first responder's course.

He's committed to start volunteering next week in Moncton.

Crown prosecutor Remi Allard congratulated Powers on his progress but stressed the seriousness of the attack, explaining to the board how his actions continue to haunt the victims.

The husband of a victim wrote in a victim impact statement that Powers's release has only heightened their fears.

Some of the current discharge conditions placed on Powers are that he must be under the supervision of a case manager and psychiatrist, with whom he will meet with regularly; he has to submit to a drug and alcohol test any time his team requests one; he must not consume alcohol, cannabis or any other unprescribed medication; he must have no contact with his victims and stay outside Fredericton city limits; and he is prohibited from having any weapons or firearms.