Pathologist testifies in trial of Manitoba jail guard, explains cause of inmate's death
CTV
New details have come to light as to what actually caused the death of an Indigenous inmate following an hours-long standoff inside a Manitoba jail more than two years ago.
New details have come to light as to what actually caused the death of an Indigenous inmate following an hours-long standoff inside a Manitoba jail more than two years ago.
Robert Jeffrey Morden, a corrections officer at the Headingley Correctional Centre in Manitoba, has been charged with criminal negligence causing death and failing to provide the necessities of life. He has pleaded not guilty.
The charges come in connection to the death of William Ahmo, a 45-year-old Indigenous man who had been an inmate at the jail when he became involved in a standoff with guards on Feb. 7, 2021.
Court heard Ahmo became enraged and agitated during a standoff with officers after he believed he was the subject of a racist joke. The comment, court heard later, may have come from another inmate.
In previous testimony, court was told Ahmo started throwing desks and computers, ripped a hot water dispenser from the wall, and was taking pieces of broken glass to craft weapons. In conversations with the jail's crisis negotiator, court heard Ahmo said things like that he would die and go to heaven, that he wasn’t going to go peacefully, and that he would kill anybody who came through the door.
Court heard previously that the crisis negotiator believed Ahmo was experiencing a mental health crisis.
The standoff ended after more than three hours when an emergency response unit – a tactical team led by the accused – entered the jail and extracted Ahmo. Video evidence shows the group of officers, armed with batons, holding Ahmo on the ground.