INTERESTING NEWS Canada’s Oldest First Nations Newspaper - Serving Nuu-chah-nulth-aht since 1974 Canadian Publications Mail Product Vol. 48 - No. 14—July 22, 2021 haas^i>sa Sales Agreement No. 40047776
Photo by Melissa Renwick
Joe Martin (left), Robin Rorick and Robert Martin (Nookmis) carve a totem pole for Opitsaht at the Tofino Botanical Gardens, on July 9. Story on page 19.
Inquest uncovers need for systemic changes Proceedings lead to 24 jury recommendations, pointing to failings in how youth addictions issues are handled By Eric Plummer Ha-Shilth-Sa Editor Port Alberni, BC - In the aftermath of an eight-day inquest into the death of Jocelyn George, a jury is calling for a systemic overhaul in how Indigenous youth are handled within the justice system, with recommendations for facilities that may have prevented the 18-year-old’s fate five years ago. The coroners inquest wrapped up in late June, after a jury of five heard from dozens of witnesses at Port Alberni’s Capital Theatre – a few blocks away from where Jocelyn Nynah Marsha George was picked up by police on the morning of June 23, 2016. Found behaving erratically and delusional, the Hesquiaht mother of two was brought to the local RCMP detachment’s cells, where she remained for most of the day and the following night, until her condition had declined to the point where she was rushed to the West Coast General Hospital the following morning. George was later airlifted to hospital in
Victoria, where she died on the evening of June 24. Cause of death is listed as “drug induced myocarditis”, an inflammation of the heart muscle due to the “toxic effects of methamphetamine and cocaine”, according to the Coroners Service. What happened from the time that George was found barefoot on the steps of a Salvation Army building until her demise the following day was put under a scrutinizing microscope during the inquest, with a stage full of lawyers representing the various agencies involved in her treatment, as well as counsel advocating for the inquest itself. The Coroners Act requires inquests for any deaths that occur while a person in the custody of a peace officer, and the proceedings are not to find fault but to present findings that prevent similar deaths in the future. What has emerged from the process are 24 recommendations, led by several that indicate procedural failings in how intoxicated prisoners are managed. Accounts suggest that George had not eaten for days by the time she was
Inside this issue... Questions remain in homeless man’s death................Page 3 Province funds residential school investigations........Page 4 Oil cleanup complete in Nootka Sound......................Page 8 ‘Emergency brake’ for commercial fisheries.....Pages 10-11 Carving project leads path to Nitinaht Lake.............Page 12
Jocelyn George rushed to hospital, and the inquest jury recommended that the RCMP implement policies that ensure prisoners have access to water and food while in cells – and that the provision and acceptance of this nourishment be recorded.
“Reasons for withholding food or water should also be detailed in log book,” advised the jury. Recommendations also include annual performance reviews, training and certification for municipal employees working as cell guards at the Port Alberni detachment. George was still a minor while she was taken in the cell, but the inquest indicated there may have been confusion among the various personnel overseeing her, leading to a recommendation for police training in legislative requirements for prisoners under 19. A release plan for the safety of minors is also in the jury’s list, as George was briefly removed from custody – barefoot with clothing still wet – for just over an hour the afternoon of June 23. That afternoon police were called again due to George’s paranoid behaviour, and although she was assessed by paramedics, it was not deemed necessary to take the youth to hospital.
If undeliverable, please return to: Ha-Shilth-Sa P.O. Box 1383, Port Alberni, B.C. V9Y 7M2
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