Families of 2 Oji-Cree men who died in Thunder Bay police custody seek healing as they await inquest findings

After four weeks of testimony, the families of two Oji-Cree men who died in police custody years ago say they're thankful the coroner's inquest in Thunder Bay, Ont., is coming to an end so they can begin to heal.

More than 20 family members of Don Mamakwa, 44, of Kasabonika Lake and his uncle, Roland McKay, 50, of Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug flew hundreds of kilometres from the remote First Nations to attend the inquest every day.

Mamakwa died in 2014 and McKay died three years later. Both were found without vital signs in their cells at the Thunder Bay Police Service headquarters after they were arrested for public intoxication.

"It's been exhausting," Denise Tait, a niece of both Mamakwa and McKay, said about the inquest. "I feel relieved that it's almost done so we can finally start our healing journey and let them rest.

"All those years that we waited … the hurt, the anger, and just what we all had to go through, the weight, and that's why I'm just happy that it's going to be done."

But the inquest isn't over yet.

There has been considerable evidence from more than 30 witnesses over 15 days about what happened leading up to the deaths, the failures of paramedics and police to appropriately assess and provide care for the men, and the role racism, bias and stereotyping may have played in how their lives ended.

Now, the story of Mamakwa's and McKay's deaths — their names, place and time, cause and manner of death — and recommendations designed to prevent future, similar deaths fall to an all-white jury made up of four citizens.

They carry a heavy task.

Multiple lawyers, during their closing arguments on Thursday afternoon, referenced the motto for the Ontario Coroners Association: "We speak for the dead, to protect the living."

In an address to the jury, Asha James, the lawyer for both families, said, "The 'we' in this motto is you. You speak for Don Mamakwa and Roland McKay to protect the residents of Thunder Bay."

The jury is also tasked with determining the manner of death for Mamakwa — whether it was a homicide, or natural, accidental or undetermined (the fifth manner, suicide, is not being considered). 

In the words of the coroner's lawyer, Kate Forget, the manner of death will focus on how he died — whether it was the result of many failures by the police and paramedics charged with providing care for Mamakwa at a low point in his life, or the result of complex medical issues.

"I think everybody [in our family] wants it to be homicide, and I hope it comes out that way. We want people to know that they are responsible for his death," said Mamakwa's sister, Rachel Mamakwa. "He was neglected, and I don't want to see that ever again."