Delores Stevenson. Photo courtesy of Manfred Joehnck.
A Regina woman says she will not rest until she gets answers on how her 29-year-old niece ended up inside a hotel laundry chute, and then fell ten stories to her death two years ago.
Delores Stevenson has organized a vigil tonight in memory of Nadine Machiskinic on the second anniversary of the tragedy.
It was January 10th, 2015 when Nadine Machiskinic was found at the bottom of the laundry chute. She was rushed to hospital, but it was too late as she was pronounced dead.
It took almost a year-and-a-half before the family received the coroner’s report. It ruled her death an accident, but a conflicting autopsy report concluded the level of drugs in her system would make it unlikely she would have been able to climb into the laundry chute on her own.
Delores Stevenson is hoping an upcoming inquest will answer that question.
“Exactly — and that is a big issue for myself and my family,” she said.
Stevenson’s persistence did result in changes to the way the coroner’s office is run, including the hiring of three additional coroners. It also prompted the justice department to call an inquest.
Stevenson is still not satisfied with the outcome, but is gratified that her voice is being heard.
“They are taking action and fixing the mistakes that were made,” she said. “I am just hoping the whole justice system could do that with Nadine’s investigation and how it was handled.”
A vigil in memory of Nadine Machiskinic will be held at the gathering place in Regina at 5:30 pm. Families of missing and murdered Aboriginal women are also invited to attend.
The inquest into Machiskinic’s death is scheduled to be held this spring.