Accused Thunder Bay officers testify at hearing into flawed investigation into First Nation man's death
CBC
Two police officers facing disciplinary charges spoke for the first time at a public hearing about their role in the investigation into the 2015 death in Thunder Bay, Ont., of First Nations man Stacy DeBungee.
Staff Sgt. Shawn Harrison and Det. Shawn Whipple of the Thunder Bay Police Service (TBPS) are charged with neglect of duty and discreditable conduct under Ontario's Police Services Act. DeBungee, 41, was from Rainy River First Nation.
Harrison pleaded guilty to neglect of duty and not guilty to discreditable conduct; Whipple pleaded not guilty to both charges.
The three-week Police Services Act hearing began in Thunder Bay on May 30, seven years after DeBungee's body was found in the McIntyre River in Thunder Bay.
Within hours of DeBungee's death, a news release that Harrison approved claimed police suspected "no foul play." The following day, a second release, which Harrison claims he didn't approve, notified the public that DeBungee's death was "non-criminal" before a post-mortem examination was conducted.
A 2018 Office of the Independent Police Review Director (OIPRD) review of the DeBungee investigation found police conduct constituted neglect of duty, as they reached the premature conclusion DeBungee fell unconscious from alcohol consumption and rolled into the river.
The case served as the impetus for a two-year investigation led by retired senator Murray Sinclair that found systemic racism in the Thunder Bay police force.
This week, the tribunal heard evidence and testimony indicating Harrison failed to pursue leads that would have garnered relevant information, he didn't read multiple internal reports related to the case, and how he assumed alcohol was the cause of DeBungee's death based on the First Nations man's legal history.
In addressing the neglect of duty charge, Harrison conceded he should have followed up on a visit a private investigator for the DeBungee family made to the police station a month after DeBungee's death.
Harrison wasn't available when DeBungee's brother, Brad DeBungee, came to the police station with Dave Perry, the Investigative Solutions Network chief executive officer whose three-day investigation had uncovered multiple leads.
Those included tracking down a couple police hadn't questioned who had used DeBungee's debit card after his death. Perry's findings are detailed in the CBC's The Fifth Estate documentary No Foul Play.
WATCH | The Fifth Estate documentary No Foul Play
David Butt, the lawyer representing both officers, asked Harrison whether missing that meeting was a neglect of duty.
"That was a mistake on my part," Harrison replied.
Cambridge council has voted to request a pedestrian safety review of Cedar Street from the region after two back-to-back collisions last week, one of which killed a three-year-old girl.
The Queen Elizabeth Hospital Foundation has received a $1-million donation to create an endowment fund that it will use to upgrade common areas at the Charlottetown hospital.
A new study by the Center for European Policy Analysis suggests Russia and China are pulling ahead of NATO nations, including Canada, in the race to develop and field drones capable of operating in harsh Arctic conditions.
Prime Minister Mark Carney says U.S. President Donald Trump hasn't given him any indication that he's willing to walk away from the North American free trade deal that was struck during his first term at the White House.
A Toronto man has been charged for allegedly defrauding 28 investors of $6.6 million they provided to trade in foreign exchange.
Flu season has started early this year, according to an update from local health officials, who report hospitals are seeing more admissions, emergency room visits, and community outbreaks.
U.S. President Donald Trump's point-person on trade laid out a series of conditions Wednesday that Canada must meet in order to extend the Canada-U.S.-Mexico agreement (CUSMA) when it comes up for a review next year — revealing publicly for the first time what the administration expects Prime Minister Mark Carney to do to keep the pact for the long term.
Mitchell Rose, 32, is now facing a third charge of attempted murder following a series of attacks in an apartment building on Anspach Street in St. John's last week.
Nova Scotia’s population dropped by nearly 1,400 people in the third quarter of 2025, marking the first decline since 2020 and the largest decline in a decade.
Horizon Health says it has a comprehensive surge plan for the holiday season but is asking people to consider other options to avoid crowding emergency rooms.
The four aerial ski lifts at Mont‑Sainte‑Anne are set to resume operations after Quebec’s building authority lifted an order that had shut them down last week over electrical safety concerns.
WARNING: This story contains profanity and details of racist language.
Blizzard conditions in Saskatoon will ease throughout the evening Wednesday, but the bad weather in Regina and southeastern Saskatchewan will last well into the night, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC).