Inquest set in 2015 death of woman held in remand
Dates have been set for an inquest probing the death of a 21-year-old woman who died while on remand at Regina’s White Birch Remand Unit in August 2015.
The public inquest into the death of Breanna Kannick will be held March 26 to 29 at the Holiday Inn Hotel and Suites, 1800 Prince of Wales Drive in Regina. The first day of the inquest is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m., with remaining start times to be determined by the presiding coroner.
Kannick was being held at the White Birch Remand Unit when, on Aug. 20, 2015, she was found unresponsive in her cell. Despite resuscitative efforts by emergency medical services, Kannick was pronounced dead at roughly 8:30 p.m., according to a news release from the Justice Ministry.
The Coroners Act, 1999, states that the Chief Coroner shall hold an inquest into the death of a person who dies while an inmate at a jail or a correctional facility, unless the coroner is satisfied that the person’s death was due entirely to natural causes and was not preventable. The purpose of an inquest is to examine in detail the events surrounding a death. Sworn evidence is heard at the inquest before a jury of six.
The coroner’s jury may make recommendations to prevent similar deaths.
Coroner Alma Wiebe, a Saskatoon lawyer, will preside at the inquest.
An inquest had originally been set for March 2017 but was rescheduled after the province requested further tests of Kannick’s vomit.
When Kannick died in August, Ministry of Justice officials said it was after she had gone into “medical distress.”
Her mother Sherri Chartrand subsequently told the Leader-Post she believed her daughter should have been on medical watch because she was dealing with drug withdrawals at the time.
As a separate matter, the family has launched a lawsuit against the province for Kannick’s death.