The spokesman for an anti-racism group in the province says he doubts an upcoming inquest into the death of a First Nations teenager will really shed any new light on the case.
Bob Hughes of the Saskatchewan Coalition Against Racism says the family of 19 year-old Brandon Daniels already knows what happened.
It was three years ago Daniels was found deceased in a Saskatoon jail-cell, after he was put there by officers who suspected he could be intoxicated.
His family maintains he didn’t drink, and suffered from a medical condition that could make it appear as though he was drunk.
Hughes says he thinks lawyers tend to slow down the inquest process, because much of their focus is making sure police aren’t held accountable.
Hughes says it shouldn’t have taken over three years for the inquest to be held:
“I think it’s basically because, even though you can’t find fault in an inquest, lawyers for police spend most of their time trying to prove that the police weren’t at fault.”
Hughes feels this type of approach can blunt the effectiveness of the inquest’s recommendations.