Sen. Murray Sinclair poses for a photo outside his Senate office on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa in a Sept. 20, 2016.Adrian Wyld
Murray Sinclair, a leading Indigenous jurist and senator, says concerns about alleged systemic racism, discrimination and bias will be central to his investigation into how the troubled Thunder Bay Police Services Board handled complaints about police investigations of Indigenous deaths in the city.
Mr. Sinclair released an interim report on Friday outlining the specific issues he will address during the review he was asked to conduct by the Ontario Civilian Police Commission in July.
"At the highest level," writes Mr. Sinclair, "this investigation will seek to help the board lead the police and the community forward in a manner that identifies and acknowledges the problem of racism in the force and in the community.…"
The release of the interim report came on the same day that charges were upgraded against 18-year-old Brayden Bushby in the death of Barbara Kentner, a 34-year-old Indigenous woman who was struck last January by a trailer hitch that was thrown from a passing car in Thunder Bay. Mr. Bushby was originally charged with aggravated assault but now faces charges of second-degree murder.
Mr. Sinclair's investigation stems from concerns expressed in June by First Nations leaders who questioned the competence and credibility of the Thunder Bay police force after its officers quickly determined the deaths of two First Nations teenagers and an older man found in the city's rivers this year were accidental.
The force itself is now being investigated by Ontario's Office of the Independent Police Review Director amid accusations of systemic discrimination against Indigenous people.
Mr. Sinclair says in his report that he will consider steps the board could take to foster better relations with the Indigenous communities of Northwestern Ontario, will look at the training given to board members and will try to find out why, in the context of ongoing concerns about racism in Thunder Bay, the portion of the police business plan addressing Indigenous issues has declined.
In addition, said Mr. Sinclair, he will look at the board's transparency and whether there is enough separation between it and Thunder Bay city hall. His final report is due in March, 2018.
Alvin Fiddler, the Grand Chief of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN), which represents 49 First Nations in Northwestern Ontario, was a leading voice in calling for Mr. Sinclair's investigation.
Mr. Fiddler said he is glad to know how the senator plans to fulfill his mandate but is concerned that Mr. Sinclair says he will not investigate the conduct of any particular board member or other individual. That decision should not have been made before Mr. Sinclair has had the opportunity to listen to concerns about board members' behaviour, said the Grand Chief.
Mr. Sinclair pointed in his interim report to the death of Ms. Kentner and said he has been alerted to other times that objects have been thrown at Indigenous people by non-Indigenous people in Thunder Bay. He said he would like to know why many of those incidents have gone unreported.
Anna Betty Achneepineskum, the Deputy Grand Chief of NAN, has been lobbying along with Ms. Kentner's family to get the charges against Mr. Bushby upgraded.
When murder charges are laid in the death of an Indigenous woman, it suggests that the justice system exists to protect them just as it protects other Canadians, said Ms. Achneepineskum. Even though Indigenous women are disproportionately affected by violence, "we have heard of too many cases in this country where the charges were not filed," she said.
"We are going to closely monitor the court process," said Ms. Achneepineskum, "because many times that's where we see the flawed system."