An autopsy was unable to determine whether a high-speed crash or police force caused the head trauma that led to a Saskatoon man’s death.
A jury of five women and one man, along with friends and family of Jordan Lafond, are learning what happened the day the 21-year-old died, as the inquest into his death began at Court of Queen’s Bench in Saskatoon on Monday.
Lafond was a passenger in a stolen truck that crashed into a fence near Bethlehem Catholic High School on Oct. 23, 2016, after being pursued by police for several minutes. He was taken into custody and transported to Royal University Hospital, where he died the next day.
Police initially said Lafond died as a result of injuries sustained during the crash, but later said it could have been from police force used during the arrest.
Det. Sgt. Kory Ochitwa, the now-lead investigator in the case, testified most of the day Monday. He said during the Saskatoon Police Service investigation, one arresting officer reported to have kneed Lafond three to four times in the upper body and head. In a police dash cam video, which the courtroom saw Monday, he said it appeared another officer may have also kicked Lafond in the head, but said due to the quality of the video it was too unclear to tell.
An autopsy performed eight days after Lafond died was unable to determine whether the trauma was caused by the arrest or the crash.
Chris Murphy, the lawyer representing Lafond’s family, cross-examined Det. Sgt. Ochitwa for a little less than two hours, grilling him on why officers involved in the arrest were interviewed by their friends, the issue of officers downplaying their use of force and why the coroner wasn’t notified earlier that police force was used.
Eighteen witnesses in total are set to testify in the inquest, which is expected to last all week. The jury will then determine how Lafond died and make recommendation to avoid similar deaths in the future.
