Nicous D’Andre Spring, who died after an intervention by correctional officers at Bordeaux prison on Saturday, should have been released on Friday, learned The Press. The young black man was in illegal detention during the intervention which preceded his death.
“The incarcerated person Nicous D’Andre Spring should have been released on December 23, 2022 following his video-appearance”, confirms the Ministry of Public Security (MSP). Mr. Spring died after a “physical intervention” by correctional officers from the Montreal Detention Establishment (EDM), also known as Bordeaux prison.
Since then, a correctional officer has been suspended, the Sûreté du Québec (SQ) has opened a criminal investigation and the MSP has launched an administrative investigation. The coroner’s office must also investigate the causes and circumstances of the inmate’s death.
The docket indicates that Mr. Spring, 21, appeared on December 23 for an inquest into his release. He was facing charges of assault, assaulting a peace officer, carrying a weapon for a dangerous purpose and failing to comply with an order.
In addition to Mr. Spring, “two other incarcerated persons who appeared on December 23, 2022 were in illegal detention since they should have been released the same day”, indicates the spokesperson for the MSP Marie-Josée Montminy. “They were released the next day, December 24,” she said.
PHOTO FROM FACEBOOK
Nicous D’Andre Spring
It is the Department of Internal Audit, Investigations and Inspection (DAIEI) of the MSP which will carry out the administrative investigation, said Mr.me Montminy, which will also examine these other illegal detentions.
“The recommendations made by the DAIEI following its investigation will be carefully analyzed by the MSP and corrective measures may be taken, if necessary”, assures the spokesperson.
Mr. Spring’s lawyer, Mr.e Stéphanie Basso, had not responded to multiple requests for comment from The Press at the time of this writing.
No less than 132 people have died in provincial detention facilities in Quebec since 1er April 2017, according to the MSP, of which only 43 were from natural causes. These figures exclude the death of Mr. Spring, since the department is waiting for the coroner’s report to compile it.
Over this period, there were two homicides, 59 suicides, and 27 deaths from undetermined causes in a prison system where just under 4,500 people were detained at the beginning of the month.
The president of the Syndicat des agents de la paix en services correctionnels du Québec (SAPSCQ-CSN), Mathieu Lavoie, said on Wednesday that Mr. Spring had “felt discomfort” following the use of cayenne pepper by the officers. of the EDM. A manager ordered the use of this weapon to subdue the victim after an altercation with other inmates, according to Mr. Lavoie.
The manager and correctional officers involved have still not been identified.
A toxicological guide from the National Institute of Public Health of Quebec (INSPQ) notes that the use of pepper spray can “increase the risk of respiratory arrest”. Dozens of death-in-custody cases involving pepper spray have been reported in the United States, but factors such as the position of the victim when arrested, intoxication or pre-existing illnesses “caused or contributed to the most cases of death,” says the INSPQ.
A candlelight vigil in memory of Mr. Spring is to be held Friday evening at Benny Park in the Notre-Dame-de-Grâce district. A crowdfunding campaign has been launched online to help his family pay for his funeral and “ease the financial stress [ils sont] currently facing”.