Partner of man who died in Winnipeg police custody hopes inquest into 5 deaths leads to change

A lengthyinquest into the deaths of five men, all of whom died while inWinnipeg police custody, is underway after years of delays.

A Manitoba judge is examining the circumstances around thedeathsof Patrick Gagnon, Michael Bagot,Randy Cochrane, Matthew Fosseneuve and Sean Thompsonin a group inquest expected to occur over 17 days.

All five men diedover a roughly 12-month period that began in July 2018.

While the cases are unrelated, each of the men was restrained face down by Winnipeg police officers, according to reports by the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba, thepolice watchdog agency that investigated them.

Tuesday's hearing began with details surrounding Gagnon's2018 death.

The 41-year-old died on Oct. 26, 2018, a day after railway workers called Winnipeg police about a manon railway property acting erratically and chasing them, according toa previous provincial governmentnews release.

Police arrived and restrained Gagnon while taking him into custody. He went into cardiac arrest during that process. Resuscitation efforts were attempted buthe died in hospital.

'Why is life in Winnipeg so cheap?'

Tuesday's inquest started with Gagnon's former partner, and the mother of their child, giving a statement in court.

"He loved children, he loved animals, he loved his family, and we're here today because he had a bad day," said his partner, Dallas Huston.

"He left behind his daughter, Natasha, who has spent the last five years trying to make sense of why this happened," she said.

"She continues to spend timetrying to understand why is life in Winnipeg so cheap?"

Huston and her daughter sat through the day of testimony in tears as they relived the details about what happened to Gagnon.

Const. Mark Adolph was one of the primary responding Winnipeg Police Service officers on the early morning ofOct. 25, when police got thecall from the railway workers.

Gagnonappeared to be scared or agitated when they arrived,Adolph toldinquest JudgeLindy Choyon Tuesday.Adolph said he believed Gagnon was in the midst of a medical or mental health crisis.

Use of force

Gagnon was outside a conductors'booth, huddled against the doorway, when police arrived, said Adolph. The constableapproached Gagnon and tried to talk to him, but the41-year-old appeared fearful and paranoid, Adolph said.

Adolph said after several minutes, hewas able to get Gagnonto come down off the walkway. When policetried to take Gagnon to the ground, which Adolphsaid was for his and their safety, he became aggressive and was thrashing, the constable said.

That's when police escalated their use of force, as they were unable to get Gagnon's hands into cuffs, said Adolph.

The police officer said he "delivered two to fourknee strikes" to Gagnon's left shoulder.

Moments after they were able to get him handcuffed, Gagnonhad "gone limp" anddidn't have a pulse, Adolph said.

Officers began CPR while waiting for an ambulance to arrive.

Gagnon was sent to hospital but never stabilized. He was pronounced dead on Oct. 26.

An autopsy later determined he died frombrain damage caused by a lack of blood and oxygen to the brain due tocardiac arrest, according to theIndependent Investigation Unit's report.The cardiac arrest stemmed from cocaine use, that report said.

Adolph said he has replayed that day in his mind hundreds of times. While he doesn't believe he or the other officers could have done anything differently, he wonders if having a defibrillator in their patrol cars could have helped.

Inquest to make recommendations, not lay blame

"He took his last conscious breath on the cold ground alongside a train track after having several knee blows applied to his back from a Winnipeg police officer,"Huston told the inquest.

"Why? Because he was trespassing. He was unarmed, and he was disoriented."

Gagnon's daughter was 12 when he died. Now 17,she barely makes it to school and is often unable to get out of bed, her mother said.

Huston said for years, she and her daughter havebeen met with one wait list after anotherwhile trying to access mental health resources for the teen.

While Huston saidshe has been able to advocate for supports for her daughter, buttoo many others don't have an advocate.

"With this inquest, I hope that we can bring about some change, namely for the children that are left behind," Huston said.

Inquests are meant to examine the circumstances of particular deaths but do not lay blame on any party. Instead, the presiding provincial court judge looksto make recommendations that may helpprevent similar deaths in the future.

The inquest continues on Wednesday, followed byhearings in November, February and March, and submissions in April.

Partner of man who died in Winnipeg police custody hopes inquest into 5 deaths leads to change

1 year ago

Duration 1:55

A lengthy inquest into the deaths of five men, all of whom died while in Winnipeg police custody, is underway after years of delays. A Manitoba judge is examining the circumstances around the deaths of Patrick Gagnon, Michael Bagot, Randy Cochrane, Matthew Fosseneuve and Sean Thompson in a group inquest expected to occur over 17 days.