Earl Burns' daughters Deborah (left) and Vanessa Burns (center) along with his wife Joyce (right) hold a photograph of Earl following a Saskatchewan RCMP preliminary timeline presentation of the events during a media event in Melfort, Sask., on Thursday, April 27, 2023. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Liam Richards)

By Cam Lee

INQUEST CONTINUES

Questions surrounding emergency alerts highlight Day Five of James Smith inquest

Jan 19, 2024 | 1:33 PM

More testimony, questions and grim details are emerging from the coroner’s inquest into the mass stabbings on James Smith Cree Nation and Weldon.

On the final day of the first week on Friday, Saskatchewan RCMP Strategic Communications led off testimony about what goes into emergency alerts and any potential improvements or changes that arose from this incident.

Mandy Maier said 10 emergency alerts were issued from Sept. 4th through 7th. Still, unfortunately, the incorrect photo of Myles Sanderson was provided in two of the alerts, with a picture of a man with the same name provided.

Maier added the incident was a human error and was corrected as soon as they had the correct photo roughly two hours later.

Keith Brown, the First Nation’s lawyer, asked Maier why the community would not be asked for images or confirmation of Sanderson’s identity.

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“We think about how quickly this incident is unfolding and we use the information we have at the time,” she said.

She said secondary conversations with members of the First Nation could cause a delay when time was of the essence.

The public has a lot of expectations around emergency alerts, Maier said, especially after the 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia where RCMP were criticized for not issuing them soon enough.

Also taking the stand Friday morning was criminal investigative psychologist Dr. Matthew Logan. He testified that his post-mortem behavioural analysis report showed Myles Sanderson exhibited traits common with someone with Antisocial Personality Disorder, Intermittent Explosive Disorder, Psychopathy, and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.

He stated that Sanderson’s symptoms included violence, lack of remorse, and a need for control and described Myles’ childhood as being full of rejection, abuse, neglect, and violence.

Testimony continues through Friday afternoon at the Kerry Vickar Centre in Melfort.

–With files from The Canadian Press