A public inquest has been scheduled into the death of Trevor Charles, who died after suffering a medical emergency while in RCMP custody in Pelican Narrows.
The Saskatchewan Coroners Service says the inquest will be held from August 18 to 21 at the Creighton Court Room. Coroner Robert Kennedy, K.C., will preside over the proceedings.
Charles, 34, went into medical distress while being held in a cell at the Pelican Narrows RCMP Detachment. Detachment staff began life-saving measures before EMS arrived and transported him to the Pelican Narrows Medical Centre, where he was later pronounced dead.
Under The Coroners Act, 1999, an inquest is mandatory when a person dies while an inmate in a jail or correctional facility, unless the chief coroner is satisfied the death resulted entirely from natural causes and was not preventable.
The purpose of the inquest is not to determine criminal or civil liability. Instead, the coroner’s jury will hear evidence to establish the medical cause and manner of death, as well as when and where Charles died.
At the conclusion of the hearing, the jury may make recommendations intended to help prevent similar deaths in the future.