Coroner’s inquest into 2022 death of man in police custody begins in Saint John

An inquest into the 2022 death of a Moncton man began on Monday.

A coroner’s inquest to learn more about the 2022 death of Dennis Johnson while in police custody began at the Saint John courthouse Monday.

Johnson, who was 48 when he died, was picked up by Codiac RCMP the night of Nov. 19, 2022, after complaints of an intoxicated man walking on the street. RCMP officers arrested Johnson for public intoxication and brought him back to the station where he was put in a holding cell.

Officers checked on Johnson around 3:15 a.m. on Nov. 20 while in a holding cell and found him unconscious. He was taken to the Moncton Hospital where he died on Nov. 23.

Hospital tests showed Johnson was suffering from a brain injury from a result of lack of oxygen to the vital organ, as well as COVID-19 at the time of his death.

Prior to the proceedings, New Brunswick Deputy Chief Coroner Michael Johnston told the jury and empty court room the point of the inquest is to learn more about the events leading up to Johnson’s death to try and avoid similar situations from happening.

A coroner’s inquest is a formal court proceeding where evidence is presented related to a death. The coroner service does not make any finding of legal responsibility.

Witness testimony

A total of nine witnesses took the stand on the first day of the inquest, including neighbours who saw Johnson the night he was arrested and first responders like Ambulance New Brunswick paramedics and officers with Codiac RCMP.

Crown prosecutor Patrick Wilbur led the witness questioning.

The first two witnesses were people who lived in the neighborhood and saw Johnson stumbling around the city streets before he was picked up by Codiac RCMP.

Lance Letourneau was once a close friend of Johnson during their teenage years. Johnson was temporarily staying with Letourneau when he was picked up by Codiac RCMP.

The duo had been drinking the night of Nov. 19 when Letourneau told Johnson he would have to find new living accommodations. That led to a small altercation between the pair before Johnson left the residence.

When asked how intoxicated Johnson was when leaving his place, Letourneau says on a scale of one to 10, he was easily a 10.

Neighbour Troy Soontiens also testified Johnson was seen “stumbling” around the road. He noticed Johnson sometime after 10 p.m. while taking his dog out for one final walk before bed.

He testified he was not the one to call 911 about Johnson, but kept an eye on him until Ambulance NB, and later Codiac RCMP arrived on the scene. From his vantage point he didn’t believe Johnson was dealing with any physical injuries when picked up by police.

First responder accounts

The first day of the inquest featured numerous first responders on the stand, including Julie Levesque-Price with Ambulance New Brunswick.

She was the first responder to witness Johnson stumbling along the streets. She pulled up beside Johnson and began asking him if he needed any assistance.

After being ignored the first few times, Levesque-Price says Johnson eventually responded in a verbally aggressive manner. She then called Codiac RCMP to attend the scene out of concern for public safety.

She testified the interaction between Johnson and RCMP appeared normal. She was told by the officers they would take Johnson with them to the “drunk tank” for the night and that no further assistance was needed.

It was around 11:30 p.m. when Johnson arrived at the Codiac RCMP building according to Staff Sgt. Nick Arbour. At the time he was in charge of the officers working the overnight shift within the city.

At the time Johnson was placed in the holding cell at the police station, there was one or two other people already in the “drunk tank” for the night. He didn’t recall Johnson having any issues responding or following directions when he was placed in the holding cell.

Arbour says Johnson could be heard snoring loudly, which he says wasn’t uncommon given why he was in holding.

It was just after 3 a.m. on Nov. 20 that officials noticed the snoring had subsided and Johnson had not moved from the cell floor for some time.

Ron Dube was the cellblock security guard that night and recalled nothing seeming out of the ordinary until an officer went into the cellblock Johnson was in to speak with another inmate when he noticed Johnson was unconscious.

RCMP immediately began CPR and performed so for about 20 minutes until paramedics arrived and Johnson had enough of a pulse to safely move him to the ambulance.

One police officer and one paramedic testified Johnson had some brown liquid-like substance around his face but could not confirm what the substance was. It was later learned Johnson had suffered from a cardiac arrest.

Paramedic William Cobbett testified Johnson had a heartrate and pulse when they arrived at the Moncton Hospital.

Moncton Hospital doctor Branislav Telgarsky told the courtroom Johnson’s initial tests after arriving at the hospital showed there was little chance of him recovering. A DNR order was signed on the evening of Nov. 22, two-and-a-half days after he was placed in the ICU.

The inquest is scheduled to take place from Monday to Friday. Deputy Chief Coroner Johnston told the courtroom the proceedings would likely only take two-and-a-half days at most before the jury would be sent away to deliberate on their recommendations.

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