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Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Man dies after an afternoon in police custody Krista Siefken
News Leader Pictorial
O
ak Bay police are conducting an independent review of the North Cowichan/ Duncan RCMP after a man was discovered in medical distress in his cell at the local detachment, and died the next day in hospital. The man, a 37-year-old from Duncan, was picked up by local Mounties shortly after 11 a.m. on Saturday. The man was reportedly passed out in a public area of downtown Duncan, and had declined assistance from paramedics shortly before police arrived. The ofÂżcers tracked the man down a short distance from where he’d walked away from the paramedics, and he was arrested without incident for causing a disturbance. “He was transported to the North Cowichan/Duncan detachment where he was lodged in cells, slated for release once sober,â€? said a statement released by Cpl. Darren Lagan. “The man was co-operative with police throughout his arrest and time in custody.â€? At 2 p.m. on Saturday, the on-duty guard found the man in medical distress. The man was taken by B.C. Ambulance Service to Cowichan District Hospital, and then transferred to Victoria’s Royal Jubilee Hospital. He died shortly before noon on Sunday. A cause of death has not yet been determined. “In keeping with the RCMP’s commitment to external review of such cases, the Oak Bay Police Service will conduct a review of the circumstances related to this death,â€? the statement reads. “The B.C. Coroners Service is also conducting an investigation, standard in cases where a death occurs in close proximity to a period of police custody.â€? Police say no further details are being released while the review is underway.
Finding forgiveness
Suspect arrested for two high-proÄle local murders: Mary Jim and Bev Stone want to one day be able to forgive whoever killed their daughters, Tyeshia and Karrie Ann Krista Siefken
News Leader Pictorial
I
n a house where the memory of Tyeshia Jones is tangible, Mary Jim talks about forgiveness. She’s sitting in her living room where pictures of her daughter plaster the walls. Photos hang in frames. Messages are scribbled in colourful text on the white paint. And newspaper clippings have become like wallpaper. They tell the story of a teenage girl who went missing, only to be found a week later, murdered. “Forgiveness. It’s a strong word,� says Jim. “It’s powerful. And not many people would forgive someone
for taking a loved one’s life. Especially Tyeshia. She was 18. She had just graduated. She had plans. And it was all taken from her, when she was taken from me.� And yet, perhaps astonishingly, Jim is not an angry woman. As her kids, her nephews, and all their assorted friends traipse through the bright home, as well-wishers stop by to offer support and a few laughs, Jim smiles and takes it all in stride. “I look at my kids, and they’re my medicine,� she says. “The pain is still there. But some of it has been taken away now, through justice.� Jim is speaking about the arrest of William Elliott, the 24-year-old Duncan man accused of killing her
Krista Siefken
The families of Karrie Ann Stone and Tyeshia Jones listen while police announce that William Elliott, 24, has been arrested for the murders of both women. daughter, as well as 42-year-old Duncan woman Karrie Ann Stone. She is aware of the long journey ahead before Elliott’s guilt or innocence will be Karrie Ann Stone: determined. died at 42 But she says she feels an enormous sense of relief just knowing the police investigation has yielded a signiÂżcant step after waiting more than a year for answers. “It was good news to us,â€? Jim says of her family’s response to the arrest. “And then again, sad, because it’s someone so young, someone who grew up with my nephews and went to school with them. “But hate, being hateful, isn’t going to get me anywhere.â€?
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It’s a sentiment echoed m bby Karrie Ann Stone’s mother, Bev Stone, during Saturday’s ppress conference announcing the arrest of Elliott. Tyeshia Jones: “It’s a bitdied at 18 tersweet moment for myself, and I’m sure for Mary,â€? Stone said. “Karrie was the type of person (who) just forgave everybody, no matter what anybody did to her. She always had a smile on her face and I’m sure she’d want me to, over time, somewhere down the road, forgive this man for what he’s (allegedly) done to her.â€? But Âżrst, the two mothers have to brave the impending court process. Jim says she plans to see it through. more on page 3