Back to square one in Ashley Smith case
Posted Sep 30, 2011 09:33:46 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The new coroner appointed to helm the Ashley Smith inquest has closed it.
Dr. John Carlisle will restart the process of finding out why the 19-year-old from Moncton was able to choke herself to death with a strip of cloth at the Grand Valley Institution for Women (GVIW).
Spokesperson from the Chief Coroner Office, Cheryl Mahyr tells 570 News the Smith family had requested a hearing into whether the inquest should be restarted given the original coroner, Dr. Bonita Porter is retiring at the end of November, “and it became pretty crystal clear to her, that this inquest was not going to end. Given that we only had one and a half witnesses and three days of testimony, it very early on in the inquest to assign a new coroner.”
In his judgement, Carlisle says he thinks less time will be lost in starting over, rather than carrying on with the inquest that started in May. Carlisle believes issues with the original inquest, like a request to blur out the faces of the guards in the videos at the GVIW, may sort themselves out.
Mahyr says a timeline for the new inquest has yet to be established, “there are some administrative issues to be sorted out, parties will need to redeclare their interest in seeking standing, check their calendars and everybody has to agree on a particular start date.”
