No fault in police investigation of woman’s death: review

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This article was published 16/04/2021 (1989 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BRANDON — The Brandon Police Service conducted an “appropriate and professional investigation” into the July 2019 death of a woman whose body was found in the home of the then-city manager, Manitoba’s justice minister says.

The RCMP conducted a review into the circumstances surrounding Christine Mitchell’s suspected overdose death at Rod Sage’s Brandon home, including the initial BPS investigation. That report was completed and forwarded to Justice Minister Cameron Friesen’s office in early 2021.

There was no wrongdoing in the initial BPS investigation, Friesen said in a Thursday statement.

“The review also noted concerns with the timeliness of reporting the overdose death to the police and Office of the Medical Examiner. This gap in reporting was due to a misinterpretation of the Fatality Inquiries Act by the Brandon Regional Health Centre,” the statement reads.

“The Office of the Medical Examiner and Prairie Mountain Health have reviewed the requirements under the Fatality Inquiries Act and the Brandon Regional Health Centre has updated its policies to reflect these requirements.”

BPS public information officer Sgt. Kirby Sararas told the Brandon Sun in October 2019 officers became aware of Mitchell’s death on July 11, 2019, from a member of the public and opened an investigation immediately.

The BPS was also first to advise the medical examiner’s office of the sudden death, Sararas said.

Deputy chief Randy Lewis said in a statement Thursday he was not in a position to speak on the results of the investigation.

“Given that the investigation was completed by the RCMP, I am not in a position to speak to the results… However, I would like to take the opportunity to thank the investigative team… who conducted the initial investigation prior to handoff to the RCMP on their thorough and professional work.”

Tara Seel, a spokeswoman for the Manitoba RCMP, referred the Sun to the province for comment on the report.

Friesen was not made available Thursday.

A spokesperson for Manitoba Justice said an investigation was not submitted to Manitoba Prosecution Services for consideration of charges against Sage.

The Sun attempted to obtain a copy of the RCMP report into Mitchell’s death, but the request was denied by the Department of Justice under multiple sections of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

In a response letter, it cited a wide variety of exemptions to deny the request, including “disclosure deemed to be an unreasonable invasion of privacy,” “disclosure harmful to relations between Manitoba and other governments,” and “disclosure harmful to law enforcement or legal proceedings.”

Sage retired from his role as Brandon city manager in February 2020, after being on paid leave since mid-October 2019.

Mayor Rick Chrest said the RCMP’s independent investigation was “constructive for all.”

— Brandon Sun