The Stacy DeBungee death investigation hearing will resume early next week.
After Thursday’s proceedings were delayed for over an hour, adjudicator Greg Walton heard arguments to call Gerry McNeilly as a witness.
McNeilly is the former Office of the Independent Police Review Director (OPIRD) and authored the 2018 Broken Trust report with claims of how cases involving Indigenous people have been handled by the Thunder Bay Police Service (TBPS).
While that request was denied by Walton, Asha James, a partner at Falconers LLP, was successful in her attempt to have Dave Perry testify next week.
Perry is a retired Toronto Police investigator and was tapped by the DeBungee family and the Rainy River First Nation to investigate the October 2015 death of 41-year-old DeBungee.
Staff Sergeant Shawn Harrison pled guilty Monday to the offence of failing to perform duties according to the Police Services Act based on the agreed statement of facts.
Harrison entered a not guilty plea on the second charge of failing to treat or protect people equally during the case.
On the same day, Detective Constable Shawn Whipple pled not guilty to both offences.
The hearing Tuesday featured testimony from Jim Leonard, the former Chief of the Rainy River First Nation, and one of the individuals behind a complaint against TBPS.
Leonard, Brad DeBungee and lawyer Julian Falconer filed the complaint with the Office of the Independent Police Review Director (OPIRD) on March 18, 2016, alleging a pattern of the police service jumping to conclusions when it comes to the deaths of First Nations people.
Brad DeBungee took the witness box Wednesday, stating that he wanted to know more about his brother’s death and was denied a Freedom of Information (FOI) request in November 2015 due to the ongoing investigation.
Also testifying at the hearing:
- Retired Deputy Chief Andrew James Hay
- Sergeant Clark McKever
- Director of Communications Chris Adams
- Detective Shannon Primmer
- Retired Constable Janine Lewkoski
Joel Dubois is the prosecutor for the proceedings while defense counsel David Butt is representing both Harrison and Whipple.
The Ontario Provincial Police has its own investigation into the death after a request from the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General.
The Livestream will resume at 10:00 a.m. Monday.
