B.C. family wants police reform after Indigenous man’s death in Prince George RCMP custody
Posted March 13, 2023 3:39 pm.
Last Updated March 14, 2023 6:46 am.
The family of an Indigenous man who died in police custody in Prince George nearly six years ago is pressing for changes in policing to deal with systemic racism.
This comes as they are facing yet another delay in the case against the officers charged making it to a courtroom.
Read More: Nearly 6 years after the death of an Indigenous man, 5 RCMP officers charged
The BC Prosecution Service says constables Paul Ste-Marie and Jean Francois Monette have been charged with manslaughter, while three of their fellow officers are charged with attempting to obstruct justice. The court date was initially scheduled for Tuesday but has now been pushed back until May 2.
Since her dad, Dale Culver, died in police custody, 20-year-old Lily Speed-Namox, says she’s lived in fear.
“I would like to see some serious changes…There shouldn’t be anybody that dies in police custody, regardless of their colour, their age, their gender,” she said.
Speed-Namox says that she wants to see changes, so others won’t have to live through similar trauma.
“That fear and anger is never going to go away. It diminishes here and there and kind of ignites at other times. It depends on the day, but that is something I am going to deal with for the rest of my life,” Speed-Namox said.
She says that the officers charged still patrol the streets.
Culver’s cousin, Debbie Pierre, says it took police three days to tell the family about Culver’s death, and six years for the police officers involved to be charged. Now, they are facing another two months of waiting before the first court appearance is scheduled.
“Our family now is appealing, at many levels, for justice for indigenous people across British Columbia and Canada to ensure that this never happens again,” Pierre said.
Related Article: B.C. family wants justice for Indigenous man who died in police custody
She wants to see some kind of Indigenous-specific oversight and for Indigenous people to be seen as integral parts of decisions and investigations.
“Have meaningful voices at those tables, so that there is co-development so that there is co-decision making, and the implementation and the oversight,” Pierre said.
She says she would also like to see a provincial independent inquiry into ongoing racism in the Prince George RCMP department.
Delays are just one of the issues that need overhauling in the system, the family says, and Pierre says that Indigenous people are worse off.
“In order for meaningful change that the Indigenous people can not be just consulted in these changes in the act or the recommendations, we need to be immersed in the process,” Pierre said.
