There will be no inquest held in regards to the death of Bradley Stephen Stadey on Dec. 20, 2011 while in Estevan Police Service (EPS) custody.
That was the word coming from Saskatchewan's Chief Coroner, Kent Stewart last week after he was contacted by The Mercury.
"The matter has been reviewed and it was determined that Mr. Stadey died of natural causes, a non-preventable severe coronery artery disease event and his incarceration in the Estevan Police Service cell had nothing to do with his death," said Stewart.
Stadey had been placed in custody by members of the Estevan RCMP detachment on the night of Dec. 19 following a disturbance at a labour camp east of the city, in the RM of Estevan. The RCMP said the incident included a potential assault and the uttering of threats with alcohol being a contributing factor.
Stadey, 52, was placed in EPS cells by RCMP. This is a common practice in Estevan with the RCMP using the municipal policing cells for people they wish to detain for further processing the next day.
Stadey's death was confirmed by 9 a.m. the following morning but the exact time of death was not determined, but rather placed at sometime between midnight and 9 a.m.
EPS protocol calls for continuous video surveillance of those being held in custody plus personal observational checks every 15 minutes by police cell monitors.
Stewart said the investigation revealed no problem with the police video monitor and that a visual check would have suggested that Stadey was asleep and that staff members would not be inclined to wake a sleeping subject.
"The autopsy doesn't pinpoint exact time of death. It isn't like in CSI," said Stewart, citing a popular crime investigation television series. He said the removal of the subject and the need to transport him to Regina for autopsy procedures, would make the exact timing of death near impossible.
"To the observer (through a cell window), Mr. Stadey appeared to be sleeping in his cell and the checks were completed and even if he had been awakened, it's very doubtful the event that caused his death could have been avoided," Stewart said.
The coroner added that Stadey did have a pre-existing medical condition and the toxicology report indicated that he had been taking his prescribed medication(s) to treat it.
As with any incident involving serious injury or death in police custody, the matter was turned over to another policing body to conduct the investigation. In this case, the Regina Police Service's Major Crimes Unit was assigned to the case with the lead investigator being Sgt. Caroline Houston. Protocol also requires the appointment of an independent observer to monitor the investigation and that job was assigned to Larry Peters, a former member of the Moose Jaw Police Service, now retired. The RCMP also assigned a liaison officer to provide updated reports on the investigation led by the Regina Police Service and the Chief Coroner's office.
Stewart said the final report regarding Stadey's death was issued May 7, but he had reached his decision not to order a public inquest just prior to that date based on the facts that were made known through the investigation.
Stadey's family said they had been expecting a formal public inquest into the event since it occurred while he was in police custody. He was survived by two children, two sisters and one brother plus numerous aunts and uncles. He was predeceased by his father and mother in 1963 and 1998 respectively. Stadey had arrived in Estevan a few days prior to the event that led to his arrest and was employed on contract to a local construction company as a heavy equipment operator.
Stadey was born in Thunder Bay, Ont., and grew up there as well as in Upsala, Ont. before moving with his family to Port Moody, B.C.
When contacted by The Mercury, the Regina Police Service communications department said that since a public inquest was not ordered, any further details other than those provided by the Chief Coroner would probably not be released through an interview with the investigating officer(s).
The last known incident in Estevan involving the death of a person in police custody was in 1906, according to EPS records.
