'Inmates, not animals': Former inmate protests mental health care in N.L. correctional system

"They are Inmates, Not Animals," read the sign Harold Williams held while standing outside Her Majesty's Penitentiary in St. John's on Thursday.

Williams, who says he's a former inmate, wants to draw attention to what he believes are inadequate resources and care for people in the Newfoundland and Labrador correctional system who struggle with mental health and addictions.

"I just felt God telling me it's time to stand up for the ones that can't be here to speak for themselves no more," he said.

Williams said he was prompted to demonstrate outside the jail after learning about the death of Greg Pike, who family says died by suicide while unsupervised in his cell at Her Majesty's Penitentiary (HMP).

The Department of Justice has confirmed that a man was found unresponsive in his cell on Sept. 16 and was rushed to hospital, where he died three days later. 

The department has not confirmed the man's cause of death, but has said a "thorough review" will be launched.

Pike is at least the sixth inmate to die in a Newfoundland and Labrador jail since 2017.