Saint John inmate knew he was sick and was scared, ER doctor tells coroner's inquest

Skyler Sappier knew he was sick and was scared, a coroner's inquest into the Saint John inmate's death heard Wednesday.

Dr. Mark McGraw, the emergency room physician who treated him at the Saint John Regional Hospital on Jan. 29, 2022, testified he was worried, too.

Although he had dealt with many COVID-19 patients, it was very unusual to see such rapid deterioration and severity of illness within one day of testing positive, he said.

Sappier was visibly unwell, said McGraw.

Based on a physical exam, and with his breathing having the tell-tale coarse "Darth Vader" sounds, it was quite obvious the 28-year-old had severe pneumonia, he said. A portable X-ray later confirmed this diagnosis.

Sappier was double vaccinated, but had been bunked with a COVID-positive cellmate during an outbreak at the Saint John Regional Correctional Centre because of chronic overcrowding, the Saint John courtroom heard. There was no mask mandate and within a week, 64 of 137 inmates were infected, along with 59 of 117 staff. At the peak of the outbreak, 80 inmates tested positive.

Sappier first reported feeling unwell to jail staff on Jan. 28 and tested positive for COVID-19 on Jan. 29, shortly before he was transferred to the hospital, the court heard earlier in the week.

Sappier's blood work showed "severe systemic illness," said McGraw. His heart rate was 144 beats per minute, instead of the normal rate under 100, and his breathing rate was 24 to 30 per minute, when a healthy young man should be between 16 and 20.

"I certainly as much as I could … tried to reassure him," said McGraw, noting it can be difficult to develop a rapport when wearing full personal protective equipment. "But he was sick and unfortunately he did appear scared as well."

Sappier died Jan. 31, shortly after 3 a.m. — just nine days before the father of two was scheduled to be released from custody.

During Wednesday's proceedings, several members of Sappier's family looked on from the front row of the courtroom, where a blanket with images of him and the message "Forever in our hearts," was spread out for the jury and presiding regional coroner Michael Johnston.

The family, members of Neqotkuk First Nation, also had sprigs of cedar scattered at their feet, and taped above the courtroom doorways, with the intent, they said, that it absorb all the negative energy of the day and later be burned.

During a morning recess, one of Sappier's sisters, Raeann Michaud, sobbed in the hallway.

The family heard that the ER doctor realized soon after Sappier's arrival at the hospital that he would have to be transferred to intensive care and intubated — "the most aggressive form of care anyone can get," and not something they do lightly.