KAMLOOPS, B.C. — A coroner's jury in Kamloops B.C., has concluded an inquest into the death of 18-year-old Jacob Setah by calling for better mental health services in rural communities.
The recommendation was among 15 made by jurors examining Setah's death after he escaped from a psychiatric unit and jumped from the upper floors of the parkade at Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops in June 2014.
During the four day inquest, jurors heard Setah was being held under the Mental Health Act and had been transferred to Kamloops from his home in Williams Lake against the wishes of his family.
The panel urged significant changes to mental health services in rural communities and on reserves, including introduction of a youth mental health crisis response team, and better support for families of teens in care.
A Taser was eventually used when police could not talk Setah off the ledge of the parkade, but the weapon malfunctioned and the teen jumped.
A jury recommendation seeks a review of Taser use in critical incidents where someone is threatening self harm.
"Until this Inquest, the facts of the tragedy had been a mystery to the family and community," said Russell Myers Ross, Chief of the Yunesit'in Government on Stone Reserve, where Setah grew up.
Some of the feelings of anger and grief have resurfaced and there is still a need for healing," he added. "The need to support families so they can be deeply involved in their child's care is important."
Pivot Legal Society represented the Yunesit'in Government and, in a release issued by the society, lawyer Doug King said the organization was generally happy with the jury findings.
"We still believe there is fundamental lack of understanding from police in how to respond to a mental health crisis," he said,
"We continue to see an over-reliance on use of force as a means of attempting to resolve a mental health crisis, and have doubts about the adequacy of current mental health training for police responders."
