The story I am about to tell you is not a happy one, but it is one that must be told, and one that speaks of the continued need for our work.
Krista Lauzon died in September 1999. Her family agreed to withdraw her from life support following a suicide attempt in the Sault Ste. Marie jail.
Krista Lauzon was 21 years old. She was an excellent student and had never been in trouble with the law. For reasons we may never know, she had been suffering from depression in the year before she died.
One evening in August 1999, she took the family car without permission after she had been drinking. Concerned about her physical safety and the safety of others, her family notified the police that the car had been taken. The police found Krista in the car, by the side of the highway. When an officer approached the car she drove off, dragging the officer beside the car. A police chase ensued. When she was finally arrested she was charged with a host of offences, including attempted murder.
Krista was placed in the women's wing of the Sault Ste. Marie jail. She was the only woman there. When she was first admitted, the correctional officers did an intake assessment of her based on the Ministry of Correctional Services guidelines and concluded she was a suicide risk.
The medical staff associated with the jail did not agree with that assessment. As a result, the policies concerning inmates who were possible suicide risks were not put in place.
None of the nurses or the doctor who worked in the jail had any appropriate training dealing with suicide issues. The doctor, who graduated from medical school in the 1950s, had had virtually no professional upgrading since graduation.
Three days after she was jailed, a guard doing the regular rounds saw that Krista was hanging from a make-shift rope in her cell. It took extra precious minutes to get her down because the guard nearest to the door did not have a key to the women's wing. Although contrary to jail policy, male guards did not carry keys for the women's wing and there was no key nearby.
How do I know all these things about Krista Lauzon? I know them because I was in Sault Ste. Marie for two weeks in May of this year for the coroner's inquest into her death. I was there representing the Elizabeth Fry Societies across Ontario. The Elizabeth Fry Societies had sought, and received, standing to appear at the inquest because we feel it is one of our responsibilities to ensure that women who are incarcerated in Ontario are treated properly, and, at minimum, kept safe.
The inquest was a very difficult experience. It was emotionally wrenching to hear the tragedy of Krista Lauzon's death, to see the pain and sadness her parents felt throughout the inquest. It was also painful, in a very different way, to see the finger-pointing between the correctional officers and the medical staff at the jail. It was infuriating to see how rules were developed that met the needs of the institution but not the women who were in that institution.
At the end of the day, after the coroner's jury handed down its well-considered recommendations, it was clear that a lot had been learned from this tragedy. We know much more than we ever would have about the way the jail was operated. We learned of policies and practices that had gone unchallenged and unexamined for years. Had we not participated in the inquest, that information might not have come to light and the jury might not have been able to make recommendations to address these issues.
There is no way to find anything positive in the very preventable death of Krista Lauzon. If, however, the recommendations of the coroner's jury are heeded - then some good may come out of this tragedy - we may have prevented further unnecessary deaths.
The Elizabeth Fry Societies must ensure that the recommendations of that jury are heeded - that changes are made - not only to the Sault Ste. Marie jail, but to all jails in the province where women are incarcerated. It is our job to make sure that these recommendations are implemented by the Ministry of Correctional Services and that juries looking at other deaths of women in custody in Ontario - and there will be other inquests because women continue to die in custody in this province - learn of these recommendations.
This is not a part of our work that we relish but it is part of the work that we need to do. We bring to these inquests the first-hand knowledge of people who work every day with women in conflict with the law. And we bring the voices of the women inside that might not be heard at all.
If my first wish is that there will come a time when women will no longer need to be imprisoned, my second wish is that while women remain incarcerated, no more women die in custody. But making this second wish come true will take much more than wishing - it will take a lot of hard work on the part of the Elizabeth Fry Societies and everyone concerned with the treatment of women in the criminal justice system.
This book is about breaking the barrier of silence. Yvonne Johnson joins in collaboration with author Rudy Wiebe to poetically relay her life story. The story begins with a letter written by Yvonne to Rudy while she is incarcerated at the Prison for Women in Kingston, Ontario. Rudy is on his way to visit Yvonne for the first time outside P4W, where Yvonne was imprisoned from April 1991 until September 1995.
She has been moved from the gray and mortared walls of P4W to the cedar, light and expanse of the Okimaw Ohei Healing Lodge in Cypress Hills in the Saskatchewan prairie. He reflects upon the history of that land, its connection to Yvonne's ancestor, Big Bear, and Big Bear's fight to maintain the land for his people.
During their first meeting, Yvonne explains to Rudy that the Elders have told her that storytelling is a gift. "If a person with a story can go deep, where people are angry, sad, where they're hiding thoughts and emotions, raise the past they've maybe forgotten and can't really recognize any more, push them to spirit-walk into themselves - to do that with a story is a gift."
This writing is truly a gift to the reader. Yvonne Johnson speaks with brutal honesty, insight, and an infinite amount of courage. It is an intimate recounting of a painful and harrowing life, so intimate that at times it feels as if one is or has been an actual witness to the outlined events.
Although the journey is compelling, it is difficult at times to withstand the detailed description of repeated violation and betrayal experienced by Yvonne Johnson. It is the hope, strength and spirit with which she writes that allows the reader to continue to the end.
Laurie is an E. Fry social worker and runs the agency's Drug
and Alcohol Counselling Program
In our Fall 2000 newsletter, we included an article about the Female Refuges Act and Velma Demerson's arrest under this Act. Velma is currently seeking compensation for treatment she was subjected to after her arrest. The Act, officially abolished in 1964, allowed for the imprisonment of women who had committed no real offense except for behaviour that was considered promiscuous or incorrigible. The following are excerpts from the brochure that is currently being circulated by the "Friends of Velma Demerson" to encourage community involvement in her fight for justice.
Imagine, at the age of 18, a police officer knocks on your door, arrests you without telling you why and, within one hour, delivers you to a judge who remands you into custody for one week for an offence which you were not aware you were committing. Imagine, that one week later, you are sentenced to imprisonment for one year and kept in a seven foot by four foot cell for most of the time when you are not required to darn socks and lift large bolts of cloth in a dismal prison while you are pregnant. Imagine that you give birth while in jail to a child that you cannot nurture properly in such primitive conditions. When you are eventually released, you are told that your "treatment" was necessary because you were living unmarried with a Chinese man and were therefore "incorrigible" and leading an "idle and dissolute life".
Although Velma Demerson eventually married the father of her child after her release, her life was shattered emotionally by this experience. After more than 50 years, Velma is now fighting for justice. However, despite appealing to the Attorney General of Ontario and other government officials, she has never received an apology.
Many women were arrested under the Female Refuges Act for being "incorrigible", a definition which included being drunk in public, begging, and being pregnant out of wedlock. The power to imprison women between the ages of 15 and 35 for a period of up to two years constituted an invasion of the federal government's exclusive jurisdiction to legislate criminal law. Thus, even by 1939 standards, this law was unconstitutional.
Velma's arrest in 1939 and the decision to put her in jail for a year is more than a shameful, racist, and sexist page in Ontario's history. It has left an existing blot on her reputation that can be erased by obtaining official acknowledgement that her treatment was wrong.
A declaration by the courts that the law was unconstitutional is the first step in Velma's campaign for justice and closure. Such a judicial declaration would vindicate Velma and make it possible for her and others to seek compensation for state-sanctioned abuse and restore the dignity and pride that they, like Velma, were robbed of at such an early age.
Velma's struggle can't be won alone. Although she has recently retained the services of a criminal lawyer to help with her appeal to the Supreme Court of Ontario, public support is also crucial to the success of this appeal.
If you would like to support Velma's struggle to have the Female Refuges Act declared unconstitutional please contact:
Friends of Velma Demerson
340 College Street, Suite 265
Toronto Ontario
M5T 3A9
Phone: 416-907-5128
Kuei Kuan Lu (also known as Lucy Lu) is a chinese woman who has been a citizen of Canada for many years. At a difficult time in her life she was sentenced to a term in prison. She has now paid her debt to society and has been released from prison. Unfortunately, she is now facing deportation back to China where her life could be in danger. If you feel that Lucy Lu should not face a further penalty and would like to support her claim to remain in Canada, please fill in the enclosed postcard and put it in the mail. No postage is required. Thank you for your support.
Over the past 49 years, hundreds of generous and committed individuals have supported the Elizabeth Fry Society of Toronto. Their support has enabled our organization to carry on its important work with women in conflict with the law.
As one of these supporters, an option you might like to consider is a planned gift. Most planned gifts come to fruition after the donor's lifetime, enabling people to contribute to E. Fry's future with little or no effect on their current lifestyle. Here are some examples of a planned gift.
- A Bequest: a bequest is a gift of money or property or a valued item that you can leave to E. Fry in your will.
- Life Insurance: gifts of life insurance allow you to turn a small gift into a big gift in the future.
- A Charitable Remainder Trust: through a Charitable Remainder Trust you transfer cash or property to a trustee, who then holds or manages it. When the trust terminates, the trust remainder is transferred to E. Fry.
- An Annuity: this type of gift allows you to make a donation today in exchange for a lifetime of security. E. Fry can provide you with the opportunity to buy an annuity that produces income for you throughout your life and, when the annuity matures, the remaining funds go to E. Fry.
- Real Estate and Other Assets: Gifts of property, artwork, and other assets may be given outright or held in a charitable remainder trust. You may continue to use your donated property throughout your lifetime and receive tax benefits too. E. Fry also accepts donations of stocks, bonds, and privately owned shares.
In the past years, the Elizabeth Fry Society of Toronto has been fortunate to receive bequests from a few longstanding supporters. Their contributions have enabled us to carry out activities that we have long wished to undertake but have not been able to do so in the current funding climate. Your bequest, whether large or small, will help E. Fry not only continue, but enhance, its crucial programs and services.
How Do I Leave a Gift to E. Fry?When you draw up your will, simply indicate the amount of money or property/item you wish to donate. If you already have a will, it is very common to make small alterations to an existing will by means of a 'codicil', which will avoid the expense of having a new will drawn up. A codicil must be signed and witnessed in the same manner as the will itself and be kept with it. Please feel free to contact our Development Department for further information on planning giving at (416) 924-3708 ext. 502.
In the last issue of our E. Fry newsletter, I mentioned that the United Nations General Assembly had declared 2001 International Year of Volunteers (I.Y.V.). In our continued effort to raise the profile of our volunteers, we have decided to display some of their photographs in this newsletter and create a volunteer collage for display in our front office. Each photograph will have the volunteer's first name, where they volunteer, and how long they have been with the agency. The reasons for this may seem obvious, but we have our own reasons that I would like to share with you.
We realized that only a few people know the number of volunteers we have or the programs they help support. And even fewer have had the opportunity to meet our volunteers. So the question we asked was, how can we celebrate the enormous contribution our volunteers make to this agency, if most people have no idea who some of them are and what programs they support? We decided that a collage of their photographs would be a great way for the agency to familiarize everyone with our volunteers and their contributions to the agency and to advertise and celebrate their collective effort, which greatly benefits the women we serve.
One of the many ways in which their efforts are recognized is at our Annual General Meeting and Volunteer Appreciation evening each year. This year two volunteers, Helen Donnelly who has participated in our social-recreational program at the Metro West Detention Centre since June 2000, and Jennifer Machado who has also participated in this program since October 1999, volunteered to speak about their experiences. They spoke about the importance of this program to the women who are incarcerated. The goal of the program is to help defuse tensions and provide an opportunity for informal discussions between the women and the volunteers. Tanya Parish who has volunteered in various capacities since January 2000 also spoke about her experiences working with women at College Park Court as a court support worker. It was clear to all present, that our volunteers find the work they do rewarding and satisfying.
A rewarding and satisfying experience is what we hope all our volunteers receive from their work with the Elizabeth Fry Society of Toronto. It is hoped that our new volunteers who have completed training this summer, will come to feel that their contribution to the women we provide service to is a worthwhile effort. Our latest volunteer training session took place in September and October, and it is already clear that our participants will bring their enthusiasm and warm hearts to help women in conflict with the law.