'I want answers': Sask. father seeks answers after daughter dies 10 days after arriving at correctional centre
The father of a dead former inmate of the Pine Grove Correctional Centre in Prince Albert, Sask. says his daughter's repeated requests for medical attention were ignored while she was alive.
The ongoing investigation by the coroner will determine if it is the case.
"I want answers and I will keep on until I get it," Bill Faulkner said after his daughter Shauna Wolf died. She was on remand at the correctional centre when she died on Dec. 27, 2015.
The 27-year-old woman was found in distress in her cell and died while being transported by ambulance from the facility to hospital in the city, according to Drew Wilby, executive director with the Ministry of Corrections in Saskatchewan.
Wolf was alone in a cell at the prison.
She was facing several charges of drugs and arms possession. Her trial date was not set at the time of her death. She had trouble securing a lawyer.
Faulkner said Wolf didn't receive appropriate medical attention, despite her repeated requests.
He told CBC his daughter called him twice a day behind bars to complain about body pains,
"She was getting sicker and sicker all the time. You could tell, talking to her. She was getting worse and worse," he said.
At the time, Wolf was coming off hard drugs, her dad told CBC.
"I couldn't see her, but I could feel the pain in her voice. She said please dad, tell me, I'll make it through."
Faulkner said she was trying to get onto methadone, and had an appointment set for Dec. 21, which she couldn't attend because she was incarcerated.
Seeking answers
Faulkner wants to know exactly how his daughter died and is seeking accountability.
"It's not right if you're in a position where you lock people up, you should take care of them. You don't take them, lock them up then forget about them."
The Ministry of Justice says an ongoing investigation by the coroner will determine if protocols and procedures were followed in Wolf's case.
"It will also determine what medical services were provided," Wilby said.
"She was a beautiful young girl. She was 27 years old, wasted life. It could have been prevented. It should have been," said Faulkner.
Twenty-six people have died while in provincial custody since 2002.
The government said it is currently reviewing medical services in our facilities and across the province in light of recent incidents.
