Mother sues corrections service after son’s death in custody
The mother of Christopher Van Camp, the 37-year-old man who died in custody at the Saskatchewan Penitentiary in June, has filed a lawsuit against the government.
The statement of claim, filed Monday in Regina Court of Queen’s Bench, names Correctional Service Canada and federal Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould as defendants. Van Camp’s mother, Lauren Laithwaite, and his estate are seeking unspecified amounts in general, constitutional, aggravated and punitive damages.
Allegations contained in a statement of claim have not been proven in court. No statement of defence has yet been filed.
“I believe this is the beginning of making the government accountable for what they do with people they arrest, or in my case, where my son broke conditions of his parole,” Laithwaite said in a phone interview.
Van Camp, 37, was found unresponsive in his cell at the prison on June 7. Emergency responders were not able to revive him.
His mother told The Saskatoon StarPhoenix in June that he had been granted parole on April 24, but overdosed on cocaine laced with fentanyl on May 24. She said he spent five days in a coma in a Calgary hospital before waking up on May 29.
A couple of days later, he was taken back into custody for breaching his parole conditions by using drugs. According to the statement of claim, Van Camp battled a drug addiction most of his adult life. He had been serving a sentence of five years, five months and 12 days for armed robbery, fraud, theft and break and enter, according to the CSC. His prison term was due to be finished in November.
He was transferred to the Saskatchewan Penitentiary. The lawsuit alleges a “violent assault” inside the prison led to his death. Tyler Vandewater, a 28-year-old fellow inmate, is charged with second-degree murder charge in connection with Van Camp’s death. His next court appearance is scheduled for Aug. 9.
Laithwaite said the family has not been told the cause of death.
The lawsuit alleges CSC “knowingly placed the ill, weakened and highly vulnerable Mr. Van Camp into the general population” of the prison and violated his charter right to life and security of the person by “placing Mr. Van Camp into unsupervised proximity of an extremely violent inmate who assaulted and killed Mr. Van Camp.”
It also alleges the CSC breached its duty to provide Van Camp with a reasonable level of security, and that it “demonstrated bad faith and a reckless disregard” for him by obtaining the warrant for his re-arrest on the Alberta parole violation.
The StarPhoenix requested comment from CSC, which confirmed that it was served with the statement of claim on Tuesday. CSC spokeswoman Veronique Rioux said in an email it cannot accommodate a request for an interview and that it is reviewing the claim.
Laithwaite said it’s been an extremely difficult time since her son died. She has been following the criminal proceedings against Vandewater, and plans to attend a sentencing hearing if he pleads guilty or is convicted, she said.
“I lost my son. I visit him every day at the cemetery. My heart knows that he’s gone,” she said.
“Sometimes my heart doesn’t believe he’s gone. It’s been a nightmare.”