Memorial held for man who died in CPS custody, family still searching for answers

Mourners gathered in Calgary on Sunday to remember Sonny Crazy Bull, who died in police custody two years ago.

Sunday's vigil took place at the Marlborough CTrain station at 6:22 p.m. the place and time Crazy Bull was arrested two years prior.

"It's heartbreaking for me expecting my son to come back home," said Crazy Bull's mother, Shelley, at the memorial.

"I miss my son. He's my helping hand. He helped me through everything."

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) completed and released its investigation into Crazy Bull's death in August. It found that Calgary Police Service (CPS) officers committed no offences and no force was used against Crazy Bull during his arrest.

Family still searching for answers

Crazy Bull, a Blackfoot member of the Blood Tribe, was arrested on Oct. 23, 2020, after police were called to the Marlborough station for reports of a man with a gun. Crazy Bull was found to have an airsoft pistol in his possession, but he ended up being arrested for probation breach-related offences.

Crazy Bull was "very co-operative" during his arrest and showed no signs of being in medical distress at the time, according to ASIRT's report.

After Crazy Bull was put in a holding cell at the CPS arrest processing section at about 6:37 p.m., video surveillance showed him ingesting something he was holding in his hand, the report said.

About three minutes later, Crazy Bull appeared motionless on camera. The details of ASIRT's report indicate staff at the arrest processing section did not conduct a welfare check on Crazy Bull until about 7:51 p.m., more than an hour after he entered the cell.

The report indicates a second welfare check was conducted on Crazy Bull 15 minutes after the first. Upon noticing the man had not moved since the first check, a staff member tried to "verbally rouse" Crazy Bull, the report said. When he didn't respond, police called for medical assistance.

Staff at the arrest processing facility and EMS tried to resuscitate Crazy Bull, according to the report, but he was declared dead at about 8:42 p.m. An autopsy ruled the death was caused by an overdose of drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine.

In an emailed statement, CPS told CBC News that its policies dictate staff "conduct a physical walk around every 15 minutes to ensure detainee wellness and each cell is visited."

CPS declined to do an interview with CBC News in regards to Crazy Bull's death.

Shelley Crazy Bull said it's frustrating to hear no offences were committed in the death of her son. She still has questions about how he might have been able to ingest drugs inside a holding cell if police conducted a search of him.

"I don't know why my son had that pill," she said.

CPS told CBC News that all detainees undergo a pat down and wand search, and walk through a metal scanner, when admitted to the arrest processing section.

Seeking justice

Michelle Robsinson, a local Sahtu Dene activist, attended Crazy Bull's memorial on Sunday. She said it was disappointing not seeing more allies come to the memorial, but as an Indigenous woman, she was also not surprised.

"How come the only people here are a few people of their family and a couple of church supporters?" she said.

"When we see people who claim to be our allies not show up to our events, it obviously shows they are not allies and they actually don't care about our issues."

As for Shelley, she said she hopes CPS officers come forward with more answers.

"All I'm asking for is just for justice to be served, and I know I'll be at rest. I'll be at peace."