Healing lodges are prisons, not country clubs

Catherine McKay drove drunk and killed a young family of four, resulting in a sentence of 10 years in prison, which is one of the most severe penalties so far for drunk driving in Saskatchewan. It was a tragic event that shocked Saskatchewan citizens.

The surviving family members were outraged recently when they discovered that McKay had been transferred to a women’s healing lodge, likely the one located on the Nekaneet First Nation close to Maple Creek.

When the court process was over, Ms. McKay was sent to a penitentiary. She received a 10-year sentence and had spent about 10 months in remand, which was subtracted from her sentence. If she behaves herself in custody she will be eligible for statutory release after about six years. She will be eligible to apply for parole after she has completed onethird of her sentence.

McKay’s speedy transfer created controversy and some of it was directed toward the healing lodge. To clarify things, it’s not as if the healing lodge is out there trolling for clients. It only accepts the clients who are sent its way. Inmates are sent to a healing lodge after they make a request and it is reviewed by a classification officer. The classification process determines the risk assessment of the inmate and they are assigned low, medium or high security status.

Next, the inmate works out a plan for their rehabilitation and goals. The Canadian prison system places an emphasis on rehabilitation where possible.

A healing lodge is a minimum security institution. There are two women’s healing lodges in Canada, one in Edmonton and the Okimaw Ohci Healing Lodge at Nekaneet.

The history of healing lodges dates back to the old Prison For Women located in Kingston, Ont. At one time this was the only federal institution for women in Canada. Each province had women’s jails, but they housed inmates serving less than two years. If a sentence is more than two years, inmates are sent to a federal penitentiary.

The old ‘P for W’ was hopelessly outdated, and new institutions were planned. Part of the process included a task force to determine the future direction of correctional services for women. The Native Women’s Association of Canada presented a brief that included a proposal for an aboriginal women’s healing lodge.

In 1990, the recommendations of the task force were released; the document, called Creating Choices, included the plan to build an aboriginal women’s healing lodge. The government accepted the proposal and began the process of looking for a location. The Nekaneet First Nation was selected as the site.

Some of the recent comments referred to the healing lodge as a country club. It is anything but. It is still a federal institution with guards, and an inmate count is taken regularly throughout the day. The inmates are not free to come and go at their leisure and in the case of Nekaneet there is no place to go, since the lodge is high in the Cypress Hills.

The act of healing is not an easy road. The inmates must address the issues that brought them there in the first place. This requires sessions of one-on-one counselling, group counselling and sessions with elders and traditional healers. Inmates must confront their past if they are to move on to a more productive life.

It’s not possible to second guess the classification process that led to Ms. McKay’s incarceration at the healing lodge. During her court appearances, she showed remorse and made a guilty plea, avoiding a painful trial.

We can’t allow one case to blemish the good work done by the healing lodges. Many of the aboriginal women in custody suffer from trauma and addictions and have experienced physical and sexual abuse.

A simple prison sentence would only make their lives worse. They need the supports that come from a healing lodge.

Ms. McKay committed a horrible crime when she drove drunk and caused the loss of the lives of four people and it should haunt her for the rest of her life.

Our elders call this natural justice, and there is no escape from it.