A family wants answers in the death of a Brandon woman who died nine days after she was arrested by police. A sacred fire is burning at the Manitoba Legislature Monday for Cassity Delvenne, as her mother calls for answers into her daughter’s death. “She was a mom. I have a granddaughter, a five-year-old granddaughter, that’s going to grow up without a mom now because of all of this,” said Cassity’s mother, Crystal Delvenne. The 24-year-old woman died on June 21. Brandon police have yet to identify a cause of death. Nine days prior, Cassity was arrested by Brandon police officers for impaired driving and resisting arrest. A portion of that interaction was caught on camera and shared widely on social media. “It’s disgusting. You know, when you have power and a gun and a badge, it’s a big responsibility. You don’t do that stuff,” said Michael Allen, one of the supporters at the sacred fire. The video appears to show two officers holding a woman on the ground and punching her multiple times. Brandon Police Service Chief Tyler Bates addressed the video at a news conference on Friday, saying it shows 45 seconds of a five-minute interaction. He said information being shared online has created a “false misleading narrative.” Bates said while responding to a report of an impaired driver, Cassity and a passenger were allegedly assaultive, combative and trying to flee. He said this prompted a use of force by officers, which included striking the woman. “With the intensity of the struggle, a second officer had to assist in getting her safely into custody,” Bates said. Bates said Brandon police forwarded all information, including dashcam video of the interaction, to Manitoba’s police watchdog. “The Independent Investigation Unit advised Brandon Police Service that, upon review, the matter does not meet its mandate nor is it in the public interest for the IIU to proceed with an investigation,” Bates said. Nine days after the arrest, Delvenne was found dead in her Brandon apartment. Bates said there is no connection between her arrest and death. “Suffice to say that at this juncture of the investigation into her death there has been no evidence, no indication of foul play,” he said, noting police don’t know the cause of death and are awaiting results from the chief medical examiner’s office. But at the sacred fire, family and supporters say they still have questions. “The fact that they’re not looking more into this, it’s negligence on their part,” said Patrick Ritchot. Brandon police said the investigation is ongoing. A spokesperson for the service told CTV News as of Monday police have not yet received the toxicology report and cause of death from the chief medical examiner’s office.
