Delores Stevenson says an RCMP report into the investigation of her niece’s death clearly shows Regina police dropped the ball and changes need to be made.
The report, which was released last week, says the Regina police investigation into the death of 29-year-old Nadine Machiskinic failed both in terms of case management and accountability.
Stevenson says one change that could make police more accountable is an independent civilian body to oversee investigations.
“Yes, a civilian oversight,” she says. “I mean, if everything had to be continually uncovered, uncovered, uncovered and at the end of the day they were told they were not being accountable on many aspects, of course we want somebody to come in and oversee the investigations and how they’ve been handled.”
University of Regina associate professor of justice studies Michelle Stewart agrees there is a need for an independent civilian body and there is no way Machiskinic’s family should have had to wait four years for some of the basic answers contained in the RCMP report.
“Were it not that Delores’ family pushed beyond the Public Complaints Commission and continued to push for an inquest, and then have an inquest, in which the matter of death was changed and pushed further, so that this report would happen. We wouldn’t be here and we’re four years into this journey.”
Machiskinic died in January 2015 after her body was found at the bottom of a laundry chute in a Regina hotel.
Stevenson also says there is no doubt the fact Machiskinic was an Indigenous woman played a role in how her death was investigated.
The fact investigators initially assumed she was suffering the effects of a drug overdose is just one example of this racism, she says.
At the same time, Regina Police Chief Evan Bray says investigators did a thorough job investigating Machiskinic’s death.
“I can’t change the outcome of the investigation,” he says. “I stand behind the investigation that was done. The investigation showed that no one was criminally responsible for Ms. Machiskinic’s death. What I can do is ensure we have a process in place to ensure that those types of gaps and delays don’t happen again.”
The Regina police chief says the public should have confidence that police can competently investigate sudden deaths, as going through the review process shows the department is willing to improve its investigations.
During the autopsy, Delta Hotel stationary was found in Machiskinic’s possession.
The stationary contained two names and a cell phone number, yet there was no documentation to suggest follow up after police found the cell phone was out of service.
The review also noted investigators delayed in examining Machiskinic’s cell phone and learning she was at Casino Regina the night of her death.
Police were not able to obtain footage from the casino as it had been purged.
(PHOTO: Left to right, Michelle Stewart, Delores Stevenson, Richelle Dubois and Robyn PItawanakwat at a press conference on the release of the RCMP review into the police investigation of the death of Nadine Machiskinic. Photo by Dan Jones.)