Slain inmate’s mom not surprised by report
SASKATOON Five months have passed since Christopher Van Camp died from injuries he suffered inside Saskatchewan Penitentiary, but it feels like yesterday to his mother and other family members.
On June 7, Lauren Laithwaite’s 37-year-old son was found unresponsive in his cell. Emergency responders who were called to the scene were unable to revive him. His cellmate, Tyler Vandewater, 28, is charged with second-degree murder.
Laithwaite said she’s “not surprised” by the findings of the Office of the Correctional Investigator’s 2016-17 annual report, released by correctional investigator Ivan Zinger on Tuesday.
“I think that the approach of the administration has created an atmosphere conducive just for punishment, nothing about rehabilitation. They need to focus more on education and health care. I think the pictures show that it looks like dogs live there. It looks like cages. And they’re surprised that violence is happening, especially at Sask. Pen, as the report states,” Laithwaite said.
Zinger found “immediate” areas of concern during his examination of a Dec. 14, 2016, riot at the penitentiary in Prince Albert, one of the three oldest federal prisons in Canada. He criticized conditions for inmates there and at Stony Mountain Institution in Manitoba, calling them “antiquated and “not conducive to modern and humane correctional practice, nor responsive to the unique needs of Indigenous prisoners.”
His report touched on developments in corrections following the In the Dark report issued last year, which addressed the need for Correctional Service Canada (CSC) to be open with disclosure to families of inmates who die in custody. While his report commended the steps CSC took after the In the Dark report, Laithwaite said CSC “failed miserably” at keeping her family informed after her son’s death.
“I got a call at roughly 11 o’clock in the morning from a pastor and all he told me is that my son passed, and by forcing the issue, I found out that afternoon, while I was in a doctor’s office, that my son had been murdered. Yet, nobody from Canada Corrections has ever written to me,” she said.
She’s been able to piece together on her own what led up to her son’s death, she said.
“Let’s face it, they’ve kept me in the dark for five months.”
A coroner’s inquest will take place after the murder charge against Vandewater is concluded. The last time he appeared in court, the case was delayed because he had no legal representation; he fired his legal representative in open court in September. Laithwaite said Vandewater still hasn’t entered a plea. His next court date is set for Nov. 15.
She feels anger, sadness and disbelief, and she wants accountability — but she’s looking beyond Vandewater’s murder charge, she said.
“My focus is on why this happened. And I’m sure anybody that reads that report, including what they said about Sask. Pen., can realize this is not a place conducive to having anybody come out of there healthy,” she said.