July 2, 2021—Ha-Shilth-Sa—Page 3
Inquest into death of Jocelyn George extends 8 days Officers recall finding the 18-year-old in a delusional state, unable to recover from drug use after a day in cells By Eric Plummer Ha-Shilth-Sa Editor Port Alberni, BC - With a dozen of her family members sitting in the audience, the eight-day coroners inquest into the death of Jocelyn George began June 21, with hope that a public examination of the circumstances around the tragedy will enable more timely intervention for others in the future. Overseen by Coroner Margaret Janzen, a team of lawyers began their questioning of at least 30 witnesses scheduled to appear. Representing the RCMP, BC Ambulance Service, the City of Port Alberni and the public interest of the inquest itself, the legal counsellors filled the stage of Port Alberni’s Capital Theatre before a jury of five. Although it is conducted like a courtroom, the inquest is not a trial leading to a legal judgement, but rather a public examination of the facts directly connected to George’s death in 2016. Jurors are tasked to objectively determine indications of systemic failure and make recommendations that may prevent future tragedies under similar circumstances. According to Matthew Lucas, George’s uncle who is speaking on behalf of the family, improvements are needed in how authorities and emergency personnel deal with someone experiencing a druginduced crisis. “I hope that we find a way to intervene in young people that are involved in the drug world,” he said outside the Capital Theatre on the first day of the inquest. “People are still dying, I think we’ve lost more people to overdoses than the actual coronavirus. So which is the pandemic?” Jocelyn George died from heart failure on June 24, almost exactly five years ago. On the morning of the previous day police found the 18-year-old sitting on the steps of the Salvation Army’s former location on Redford Street. Barefoot and scantily dressed on a rainy morning, the attending officers found her to be soft spoken, but delusional and appearing to be under the influence of drugs. “She was stating to me that she was playing hide and seek and that the others hadn’t found her yet,” said retired Const. Richard Gagnon, one of the two officers who attended. “What she was saying just didn’t make sense.” Const. Beth O’Connor found George to be vulnerable and unable to care for herself. “She appeared to me to be under the influence of something, I would have guessed some kind of a stimulant,” said
Photo by Eric Plummer
Family members April Lucas, Mamie Lucas, Colin Frank and Matthew Lucas stand outside the Capital Theatre holding pictures of Jocelyn George on June 21, the first day of a coroners inquest into the circumstances surrounding her death after a night in police custody five years ago. high heart and respiratory rate, George ing concerning behaviour. Appearing to O’Connor during her testimony. “One of arrived at Port Alberni’s West Coast Genbe delusional and under the influence of the responses that I recall was that she eral just after 9 a.m. Amphetamines and was baking cookies, that she was playing drugs, she was soon assessed by ambucocaine were still detected in her system, lance personnel, who did not deem her hide and seek with her friends.” prompting a flight to Victoria’s Royal in need of hospitalization. This put the During his testimony, Gagnon, who reJubilee Hospital that afternoon. responsibility on police to return her to a tired from the RCMP in 2017, recounted But it was already too late, recounted taking George to her address of residence, cell, where she remained for the evening. Lucas, who was at the Port Alberni hosVideo footage taken over that night but no one was there to receive her. He pital with other family members while his then brought her to her mother, Claudette shows George sitting up and lying down niece was being treated. in her cell numerous times. At 1:28 Lucas, who was caring for George’s two “They couldn’t find a pulse,” he said. a.m. she drank water from a tap, but she young children and informed the officer “I said to the doctor, ‘It seems like my wasn’t eating, and hadn’t for two days, that she would be unable to manage the according to what was reported to police. niece is gone’. He just kept saying, ‘It’s a teenager. In the past while in a similar shame that we have to move her’.” When he began his shift that morning state George would just leave, recounted Records show George went into cardiac Gagnon said he heard from the cell guard Gagnon. arrest at 7:08 p.m., and was pronounced that George was not getting better. “Her mother stated to me that she was dead shortly thereafter. Five years later, “I recall him saying that she appeared taking care of Jocelyn’s children at the her family has had the chance to say to be still under the intoxication of time,” he said. “She just thought it was goodbye, but see others in Port Alberni something, as she hadn’t eaten all night, not appropriate to have her in the house who are undergoing similar struggles. she hadn’t drank that he was aware of in the condition she was at, so if I could “In our hearts, we’ve dealt with our and that she didn’t appear to be getting take her back to cells and hold her until grieving for her. We’ve dealt with her better from when she was first brought she was able to take care of herself.” and sent her away,” reflected Lucas as he into cells,” he said. “She was just rolling By 7 a.m. George was taken into stood outside the inquest venue in Port around like she was still impaired.” custody at the Port Alberni detachment, Alberni’s uptown district. “I hope that By 7:33 a.m. she was finally given food detained under B.C.’s Mental Health Act. we can find a way to get our girls and and water, but the cell guard noted that She remained in the cell until she was our young people okay. When you drive she did not eat and had a dry mouth, deemed fit for release at 4:23 p.m. down here you see people that are inprompting another call to ambulance. But about an hour later a friend called volved in heavy drug use. It’s a tragedy.” With a very low blood pressure with a 911 reporting that George was still show-
