Advocates issue a call to action as part of Prisoner's Justice Day
It was a moving moment outside the Sudbury Jail on Wednesday morning as advocates gathered to commemorate this year's Prisoner's Justice Day.
The day has been held on Aug. 10 every year since 1975, to remember Eddie Nalon, who bled to death in a cell at the Millhaven Penitentiary.
"Prisoners' Justice Day is a very important day for us to commemorate and remember those who have died unnatural deaths while in custody," said Sara Berghammer of the John Howard Society of Sudbury.
"It's important to remember them so that their memory lives on. It's also an opportunity for us to raise awareness about some of the issues people are facing."
Berghammer said post-pandemic, inmates are dealing with soaring rates of substance abuse, mental health challenges and lockdowns.
"If we're speaking specifically about the pandemic, we've had difficulties gaining access to the jail to offer programs and services like our library program or our jail visitation program, which further isolates the people inside," she said.
"It's one of the reasons why we push for alternative programming and that custody be a last resort."
One of the speakers was Cory Roslyn of the Elizabeth Fry Society. She mentioned Delilah Blair, a 30-year-old Indigenous woman who died while in custody in Windsor while waiting for supports.
Roslyn said what happened to Blair was unjust and unacceptable.
"I've been involved in the inquest into Delilah's death over the last five years," she said.
"Since she died, seeing what she went through, what she experienced, I think is pretty typical of how our system works and (how) our system treats people who have mental illness and addictions who are incarcerated."
The day is a way to "bring light to the issues," she said, as well as honour Blair.
"There's always a little bit of fear of the unknowns and I think it's easy for people to look at prisons and incarceration as a way of keeping their community safe and really what we're doing is creating harm to members of our community," Roslyn added.
Caitlin Germond, of the Canadian Mental Health Association, talked about the need to focus on mental health.
"It's an opportunity for us to pause and reflect and take that moment to remember individuals who have died of unnatural or violent deaths while in custody," Germond said.
"Individuals in custody, we see mental health issues are four to seven times more common for those in custody compared to everyone else."
Aurora Stone, Reseau Access Network's peer-engagement coordinator, can speak from both professional and personal experience.
She was incarcerated for a time at a Hamilton-area jail for a crime she said she did not commit.
"It's very important to me," Stone said.
"I didn't have anyone to post bail for me. I had no family that could help me get out of the situation, so I know what it's like to be stuck in this emotional, spiritual and mental torture."
Stone said many people need access to harm-reduction services, considering the hard lives most people living with addiction have had to deal with.
"Maybe the first time you use substances it's a choice, but after the first time it's no longer a choice," she said.
She described life in prison as a place where "you can hear the rats crawling in the ceiling and vents. There are cockroaches as big as your finger."
If you make someone angry, you're sleeping on a concrete slab in a paper dress," Stone said.
"When you go into jail, if you're not already in a treatment program, they're going to let you suffer for sure. So we need harm reduction services."
According to the John Howard Society of Sudbury, 53 prisoners died in federal institutions during the 2020/2021 fiscal year, and 30 per cent of those deaths were deemed unnatural.
About 50 per cent of all deaths in Ontario correctional facilities between 2000 and 2015 were of unnatural causes.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
opinion I've been a criminal attorney for decades. Here's what I think about the case against Trump
Joey Jackson, a criminal defence attorney and a legal analyst for CNN, outlines what he thinks about the criminal case against Donald Trump in the 'hush money trial.'
$3.8M home in B.C.'s Okanagan has steel shell for extra wildfire protection
A home in B.C.'s Okanagan that features a weathering steel shell designed to provide some protection against wildfires has been listed for sale at $3.8 million.
Diver pinned under water by an alligator figured he had choice. Lose his arm or lose his life
An alligator attacked a diver on April 15 as he surfaced from his dive, nearly out of air. His tank emptied with the gator's jaws crushing the arm he put up in defence.
Psychologist becomes first person in Peru to die by euthanasia after fighting in court for years
A Peruvian psychologist who suffered from an incurable disease that weakened her muscles and had her confined to her bed for several years, died by euthanasia, her lawyer said Monday, becoming the first person in the country to obtain the right to die with medical assistance.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
Celebrity designer sentenced to 18 months in prison for smuggling crocodile handbags
A leading fashion designer whose accessories were used by celebrities from Britney Spears to the cast of the 'Sex and the City' TV series was sentenced Monday to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty in Miami federal court on charges of smuggling crocodile handbags from her native Colombia.
Wildfire leads to evacuation order issued for northeast Alberta community
An evacuation order was issued on Monday afternoon for homes in the area of Cold Lake First Nation.