James Smith stabbing victims had little chance of being saved by paramedics, pathologist says
CTV
The inquest into a series of brutal stabbings in rural Saskatchewan wrapped up its second week on Friday with another day of graphic testimony from a forensic pathologist.
The inquest into a series of brutal stabbings in rural Saskatchewan wrapped up its second week on Friday with another day of graphic testimony from a forensic pathologist.
Dr. Shaun Ladham performed the autopsies on five of Myles Sanderson’s 11 victims in the September 2022 mass killings in the communities of James Smith Cree Nation and the village of Weldon.
He told the jury the stab wounds he examined were severe enough that there was little paramedics could have done to save the victims. Many of the victims would have required quick surgical intervention beyond the capabilities of the first responders, already a 25-minute drive away in Melfort.
“EMS, while they may give some fluids would not be able to counteract how much blood would be lost,” said Ladham.
The inquest also heard testimony from Sanderson’s former caseworker at the Willow Cree Healing Lodge, where he was transferred from the Saskatchewan Penitentiary in February 2021 after being downgraded to minimum security.
Former Willow Cree parole officer Diane Raine suggested the isolated location on a rural reserve and the intensity of the programs were difficult for Sanderson, and he had requested to be transferred back to the Prince Albert-based penitentiary.
“Myles told me that he was triggered, for one,” said Raine.
