APTN National News April 26, 2024 – Family frustrated by investigation, Jury recommendations

[Music] good evening I'm Dennis Ward welcome to APN national news a Tusk Aurora Family from Six Nations living in St Katherine's Ontario are frustrated with the way police handled their brother's missing person's report and now the investigation into his death here's Annette Francis with that story family and friends are keeping Johnny Kon crate's memory alive they're also pushing the Niagara Regional Police for answers I don't know the next steps but what I do know is somebody needs to be held accountable for what happened to my brother 32-year-old Johnny was last seen on February 29th of this year his sister Ashley called the police to file a missing person's report on March 2nd but was told she'd have to wait 24 hours March 4th finally uh a police officer came out and took a statement from me to file the Miss iners report and then the following day um to detective showed up by this time we already had uh posters made and everything and we had people out doing ground searches on March 9th after Ashley had asked the police to search this place place she and a group of family and supporters came on their own to look for her brother who had now been missing for 9 days Johnny used to go to this house because our cousin lived in this house she says there were seven people in the house they swore that her brother wasn't there but as soon as the door opened you could smell the decomposer of of his body after forcing their way in they found Johnny's lifeless body upstairs buried in a pile of rubbage I just started screaming call 911 call 911 according to an email and press release from the Niagara Regional Police Service Foul Play is not suspected and the cause of death has not yet been determined two people were arrested and charged with indignity to a dead body one was our cousin and one was a childhood friend like someone and her boyfriend so Sam the Ember and her boyfriend Mikey Patterson Sean Vander is the president of the niagar regional native Center he's been advocating for the family my biggest cause for concern right now is the police are under are operating under the assumption that there's there has been no foul play that this may have been an overdose um which is very problematic because the coordinator reports not there and it hasn't been released yet and for them to just assume this is the case is is again very telling of their opinion of indigenous people Ashley says a lot of things point to systemic racism I think the fact that my brother had a past um criminal record and involvement with the police I think that affected the search for him and I think the fact that he was indigenous a affected the search for him as the investigation continues the family and Indigenous community remain hopeful that additional charges will be brought forward and at Francis ap10 National News Ottawa to White Horse now where a Coroner's inquest into the deaths of four indigenous women wrapped up Thursday Cassandra warville Miranda TJ Charlie Josephine Hager and Darla Skookum died while accessing services at the shelter in 2022 and 2023 Sarah Connors explains the J's recommendations after roughly 7 hours of deliberation the jury issued eight recommendations aimed at improving training and policies for White Horse emergency shelter staff the jury recommended a complete policy review within six months by connective the nonprofit group who operates the shelter that review would ensure that the way connective runs the shelter is evidence-based and provides clear direction to staff other recommendations include adopting a more comp comprehensive staff training plan within 6 months as well as recruiting more indigenous employees and people with lived experience the jury was also tasked with determining the women's cause of death all of which are linked to toxic illicit drug use they determined all four women's deaths were accidental on Friday a Unity walk was held to honor the women loved ones of 52-year-old Darla Skookum who died after shelter staff put her to bed on her stomach shareed their thoughts on the inquest findings shocked actually and right now I feel angry and upset and the outcome was not very what we expected like um I think we wanted a little bit more somebody to be accountable for their actions these shelters are supposed to be safe spaces they're supposed to um you know be there to help the people who are accessing and I know that capacity is low I know that training is necessary um but you know it's alarming to think that people are still being put on their stomachs as we speak and it took an inquest to say that's not appropriate although the jury's conclusions are not binding it's hoped that any recommendation suggested if implemented will prevent future deaths Sarah Conor APN national news White Horse now connective the organization that operates the shelter said in a statement it acknowledges and supports the jury's recommendations officials say it will carefully review the jury's findings and plan for short medium and long-term changes to strengthen Service delivery to Winnipeg now where TR wheatle is has an update about the upcoming trial of a non-indigenous man accused of killing four indigenous women the decision about who will sit on the jury for the upcoming Jeremy's kabiki trial was made in this winipeg Courthouse late this week there are four counts of first-degree murder to which the accused has pled not guilty to one of the women Rebecca K's partial remains were found in two locations inside a garbage Vin and a city run landfill back in the spring of 2022 the remains of Morgan Harris and marcedes Myan are believed to be in another landfill just outside the city of Winnipeg according to the police the fourth is an unidentified woman who since been given the name m on ajibu name meaning Buffalo Woman by indigenous leadership here in Manitoba police say she is also indigenous and in her mid 20s pre-trial proceedings begin in the courtroom on Monday meanwhile the 12 person jury isn't expected back until May 8th the largest courtroom here will be used for the trial for the next 6 weeks TR Wheatley aptn National News Winnipeg thanks T still in Manitoba organizations are demanding the removal of a trustee at a school division after he delivered a presentation that included residential school denialism Sarah bettens has more at a public board meeting on April 22nd Paul coffee an elected trustee in the Mountain View School Division near dolphin Manitoba claimed residential schools were quote good and essential for reading and writing and arithmetic also enforcement of School attendance unquote the comments were broadcast on social media coffee also says he went to a day school and has a cabin and ojibway ancestry he denounced The Truth and Reconciliation Commission and land acknowledgements and called the term White Privilege a racist comment nobody at the meeting intervened both the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs and Southern Chiefs organization condemned coffee's comments and demanded his removal from the school board on Friday AMC Grand Chief Kathy Merck demanded a full apology from the school board for somebody to who is in a trusted position a member of a a School Division to make these remarks is very um detrimental to to our people and detrimental to our children that CU we have a lot of our children that go to school in that school division Manitoba teacher Society president Nathan marale described the presentation as vitriolic uninformed and harmful Martin Dale said while the associations have the right to free speech coffee's views have no place in Manitoba school boards the trustees are folks who are entrusted to to safeguard and Advance the education of young people so that's why his comments were so appalling and unacceptable so it's uh um that commentary has no place on school boards so yes the Mana teacher Society is calling on the trustee to resign on Wednesday EPN sent an email to the Mountain View School Division asking whether the presentation was vetted and whether coffee will remain a trustee they did not respond in a statement published on the school division's website the Mountain View superintendent and CEO Steven jadak said he regrets not interrupting and stopping the presentation currently coffee is still listed at award trustee Sierra button APN National News Winnipeg a first nation in Southwestern Ontario has declared a state of emergency due to Rising Benzene levels in the local area the amjon first nation is located near sarna in an area known as chemical Valley on Thursday it declared a state of emergency due to Rising Benzene levels Benzene has been linked to a number of negative Health impacts including cancer residents blame the increased level on a nearby Plastics plant ino's styrolution it's currently closed for maintenance Chief Chris plain says the band office child welfare center and education department are closed due to the state of emergency he says the first nation has complained about poor air quality for years and wonders why nothing gets done you can only speculate right environmental racism uh the almighty dollar you know uh the the fact that uh the resources are needed more than uh you know our our our our being here in this community they they must weigh outweigh you know the fact that uh the product that they make over there is so important that they can't stop making it for a short period of time or find alternative places to acquire it for whatever purposes they they have that they need to continue to poison US Air Canada is apologizing after the afn's national Chief had her head headdress removed by staff on a flight we'll hear from the national chief after the break welcome back many including the Prime Minister are weighing in on an incident on a an Air Canada flight where the Assembly of first nation's National Chief had her headdress taken from her Sydney Woodhouse neac posted photos of the incident on social media on Thursday she said she was on a flight an Air Canada flight on Wednesday and was carrying her headdress in its case as a carry-on item like she's always done on previous flights only this time a flight attendant stopped her and told her she must put the headdress in the cargo bay below the headdress was then put in a clear garbage bag and placed below the rest of the luggage today reaction from the Prime Minister this uh was a mistake that I know uh Air Canada is looking into right now but from my perspective um that is U you know it is an unfortunate situation that I hope is going to lead to uh a bit of learning not just by our Canada but a lot of different institutions in a statement Air Canada said they regret what happened adding that the headdress was too difficult to carry in the cabin due to storage space limitations they added quote we have reached out directly to speak with national Chief Woodhouse nepinak to better understand and apologize for her experience we will be reviewing our policies as a result of this regrettable incident woodh house nepan ax as her headdress has extreme cultural significance and should not be touched or handled by others a pilot on the plane later brought the headdress back after the national Chief complained here's some of what she had to say when we spoke with her earlier today I hope uh I hope we can do better and I know that I talked to airic Canada today I talked to the president just moments ago and I told him that um we're going to be calling for a mandatory board member on Air Canada the board of directors that should be a first nation's person uh we've asked for protocol for first nation's people um and we've called for cross-cultural training for all of their staff as well you can watch that full interview with afn national Chief Cindy Woodhouse nepinak over on our website APN news.ca time now for our truth and politics panel and we were joined on Thursday by Negan Sinclair and special guest panometer who were here to discuss the viral memes of Manitoba's Premier wob Cano the story is that uh wob Cano was in a community Gathering uh one of his relatives uh popped a tire uh had a flat and uh he offered in his suit uh the same suit that he does press announcements uh goes out there and uh greets and runs for office uh the same suit there he was uh fixing a tire on a dirt road uh what looked like a First Nation I think and so uh this has exploded into a massive series of memes and it kind of reminds me a lot of the mermaid movement or the merman movement just a short while ago that communities kind of competing with each other um people have been taking the wob canoe image of him fixing a tire and ab using it in all these different contexts making uh Indian tacos uh delivering children uh helping put up uh bead work or or art and you know it's it's become a really funny thing and uh there was a few things that people going hey this might be uh inappropriate to sort of use his image and and put it out of context and so on uh I can tell you that from the canoe family they really find this whole thing very funny uh and they also sort of indicate that uh fellow panelist Jennifer who uh tweeted out actually something really interesting this morning saying that um it's interesting that uh I think it indicates this kind of public appeal and that he's become a kind of figure in Manitoba and across the country that uh is very engaging and so I think people are both having a lot of fun but they're also indicating I think a real appreciation for the fact that he's balancing a government at the same time as changing a tire yeah we spoke with the premier yesterday about it all and he was having a good laugh as well Pam typically memes of politicians aren't uh so lighthearted what do you think of what's played out here well I love that he's taking it in good humor which is such a dramatic contrast between the non-indigenous political world where everything is so serious and everything is some kind of slight um I love that we can do that and as indigenous peoples we've done that for so many things not just the merman but think about grou you know on on the Star Wars series The Mandalorian here he was this lost little grou little look like baby Yoda and we all took him in we all put him in bassinets and and dressed him up in Native clothing and I just think that this goes to show how much we love our culture and we love our people because we know other politicians be threatening to Sue or slander or whatever else and I I just think of the contrast between do you remember Mike Pence who got the fly on his head and he was so upset about that happening and there was a bazillion uh memes about different things on his head including Bernie Sanders wearing mittens and we all thought it was funny but he didn't think it was so funny and that's what I love about Manitoba Premier he like this is all good fun this is what we do and I'm sure he's made memes about people before I can't wait to see all the memes about neon this is going to be fantastic with a mustache with the mustache for sure painted on Pam neon we'll have to leave it there Pam thanks so much for helping us out this week appreciate you both yeah thank you and you can check out a much longer discussion we had with neon and Pam yesterday over on our website APN news.ca or our APN News YouTube page uh film fast showcasing indigenous projects gets underway in Edmonton today details on that and more after the [Music] break welcome back time now for our photo of the day Charmaine Larson sent in this amazing shot of the Northern Lights from sucker Creek first nation in Alberta amazing stuff thanks Charmaine be sure to send us a picture this weekend to share a.ca for the chance to be our photo of the day now let's take a look at tomorrow's weather forecast starting on the East Coast sunny skies in 15 in frederickton 12 Under the Sun in Halifax seven in kuak rain and five in na 17 in Montreal showers and 11 for Valor rain and 17 in s St Marie showers and 13 for North Bay eight with rain in Thunder Bay snow and a high of five and Sue Lookouts minus 6 in Churchill 16 above in Norway house nine with showers in Winnipeg Suns out and nine for Dolphin 20 above in Regina 18 in Saskatoon 13 for meal Lake rain and seven in the range over in Northern Alberta sunny and 10 for high level four Under the Sun in Fort chipan 10 for Edmonton cloudy and 14 in leth brid showers and 14 for Vancouver 15 with rain in caml 14 in Prince George 16 for Smithers zero snow and Old Crow 15 above in White Horse plus one in Yellow Knife zero with snow in Norman Wells minus 14 for saaks Harbor and poit N9 Below in cville Lake 11 below with snow in Chesterfield flurries and- 13 in Wale Cove 20 below in Resolute minus 14 with snow in Joe Haven the dream speakers International Film Festival kicks off today in Edmonton the event showcases indigenous filmmakers writers actors from around the world ap's Chris Stewart spoke to some of the makers of the documentary before the sun showing the challenges a blackf foot woman has in the world of Indian horse relay I feel like there's definitely like more eyes on me CU I I'm a girl Carrie Newman is the executive producer of a demo dapi nusi before the sun it documents the real life experience of a young Sika woman Logan redcrow who decided to enter the dangerous world of bearback horse relay it shows her as a new Rider and her efforts to ride in a traditionally men's sport this is a film that doesn't sidestep the reality of what it means means to grow up as an indigenous person in Canada but it focuses on excellence and joy and love and for me as a father of a young indigenous woman um I think it's really important that we that we focus on that sometimes also because Logan is an incredible role model the documentary is playing Saturday at 9:00 p.m. at the Metro cinema at the Garo theater along with dozens of other films during the dream speakers Festival the star Logan redcrow says she knew early that the horse relay was something she wanted to do I thought it was the coolest thing when I was just a little kid so I always knew I wanted to do it and then my dad was helping one of his friends with his relay team and then yeah my mom asked me if I wanted to enter the race when I got older I think I was 15 yeah I was 15 and I entered my first race and the speed was really fun and yeah I just got hooked on it ever since I feel like it should have crushed my spirit I could have allowed it to but one thing that really helped me was just being with my horses she says she learned much since filming the documentary and is chasing that elusive first win against the men I feel like I could get a win someday but there's just a little minor mist mistakes that happen so I'm still still waiting for my day to go in the win winner circle in the men's race over 40 films are featured in the festival from across the globe besides screenings filmmaker panels animation workshop and more fill out the program the in-person event runs until Sunday and continues online with virtual panels and workshops and all of the films are available to stream Chris Stewart APN national news em nice words there from Carrie love the horse relay looks like a beautifully shot film good luck to Logan making it to the winner circle that is all the time we have for your APN national news for this Friday for much more you can head on over to our website that's APN news.ca or subscribe to our APN News YouTube page I'm Dennis Ward Mercy mwit thanks for being with us have a great night

Channel: APTN News

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Id: 17wvaMpK3EU

Length: 23min 51sec (1431 seconds)

Published: Sat Apr 27 2024