Forensic psychiatrist testifies at coroner’s inquest into death of Soleiman Faqiri

A video of Soleiman Faqiri taken by corrections staff at an Ontario jail a few days before his death shows a man “probably as unwell as you can get,” a forensic psychiatrist told a coroner’s inquest Wednesday.

Corrections officers acting outside of procedure recorded footage of Faqiri in his cell at the Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay, Ont., and in the shower on Dec. 11, 2016, in an effort to demonstrate the extent of his illness, the inquest heard.

Dr. Gary Chaimowitz, a forensic psychiatrist who watched the video along with jurors, said Faqiri appears severely ill as officers try to coax him to come out in order to get himself and his cell cleaned up.

“As a psychiatrist looking at that video, I see somebody who’s in the throes of a very severe psychotic episode, probably as unwell as you can get, as out of touch with reality (as you can get),” said Chaimowitz, who heads the forensic psychiatry program at McMaster University and the forensic program at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Hamilton.

The inquest has heard Faqiri, 30, was arrested in early December 2016 after allegedly stabbing a neighbour while experiencing a mental-health crisis. He died after a violent struggle with corrections officers on Dec. 15, 2016, less than two weeks after he was taken into custody.

His condition worsened while he was at the jail but he never saw a psychiatrist, and he was deemed too unwell to attend a video assessment of his fitness to stand trial, inquest jurors have heard.

“The video that was shown today shows what we’ve known all along: Mr Faqiri was deeply unwell and belonged in a hospital – not a prison cell,” lawyers for the Faqiri family said in an email Wednesday.

“The video – which depicts Mr. Faqiri being co-operative with the guards who were patient with (him) – shows that what he needed was kindness, compassion and care.”

The cellphone video shown at the inquest begins outside Faqiri’s cell and shows an officer speaking to him through the door. Faqiri’s answers can’t be heard, but his hands and arms swing in and out of view through the narrow window.

At one point, the camera approaches the window to show the inside of the cell, which is dirty and strewn with what appears to be toilet paper; an officer notes there is a “stench of feces, urine and vomit.” Shortly afterwards, Faqiri –  naked, with pixelation on the video to protect his privacy – is seen lying face down on the floor.

The officer continues to speak to Faqiri through the door for some time, asking if there’s anything he needs. Eventually, Faqiri agrees to be handcuffed through a hatch in the door and comes out of the cell. Officers cover him with a white sheet and lead him down some stairs to a shower stall.

The shower door has bars and once Faqiri is inside, he lies face down on the floor. Officers explain that he should stand so they can remove the cuffs, which they do after he gets up and puts his hands through a hatch. Faqiri then sits in the corner as the officers explain how the shower works. They encourage him as he gets under the spray. Faqiri is gesturing and appears to be speaking as he washes his face and hair.

Correctional staff, nursing staff and the physician who saw Faqiri all expressed concern about him in written records, and various options to get him treatment – including sending him to hospital as an emergency patient or for a mental health assessment – were considered, though none of them materialized, Chaimowitz said.

Seeking an assessment of his fitness to stand trial could have indirectly led him to get care, but it’s a longer process and “not ideal,” he said.

Faqiri wasn’t taking oral medication regularly, and on Dec. 13, the institution’s physician administered medication by injection, the inquest has heard.

The injectable medication can last about a month but it takes at least a week, if not longer, to kick in and requires a follow-up injection, Chaimowitz said. “It’s not an emergency treatment,” which Faqiri needed, he said.

Earlier Wednesday, the inquest heard Faqiri denied having a history or symptoms of mental illness when he was admitted to the jail, but even non-medical staff could quickly see signs that he was unwell.

In health assessments conducted when he arrived, Faqiri reported no history of psychiatric issues or medication, and marked “no” on a checklist of symptoms for mental illness, the inquest heard.

It’s not uncommon for people in his situation to misrepresent themselves, and it’s not clear whether he did so intentionally or by mistake, Chaimowitz said.

“What’s apparent is that Mr. Faqiri denied all the symptoms but there’s obviously an opportunity to observe the individual directly as well.”

Hours after the assessment, correctional staff began taking notes on Faqiri’s behaviour, writing that he was banging on the door of his cell and shouting throughout the night, and clogged the toilet, flooding his cell, around 5 a.m., the inquest saw.

Faqiri was “clearly agitated,” Chaimowitz said. While that could just be a display of frustration over being detained, “it could also be consistent with someone who’s very unwell,” he said.

The inquest began this week and is expected to last 15 days, ending shortly before the seventh anniversary of Faqiri’s death.