Tears flowed in a Winnipeg courtroom Tuesday as friends of a 16-year-old First Nations girl fatally shot by police described the moment they realized she had been harmed.
Three of the four youths in a stolen Jeep that Eishia Hudson was driving when she was killed took the stand at an inquest into her death.
Eishia was shot April 8, 2020, after police responded to reports of a liquor store robbery and chased the Jeep. The fatality inquest has heard the vehicle “rammed” a police cruiser and hit other vehicles during the pursuit before an officer fired two shots.
It also heard everyone in the stolen vehicle had been drinking. Some also used marijuana and cocaine that day. All of the youths were under 18 at the time of the encounter and cannot be identified.
After the robbery, the vehicle led police on a chase that ended when Eishia lost control of the Jeep and hit a stopped truck.
“(Police) dragged her out of the vehicle, put her in the middle of the road and started giving her CPR,” a female who was in the vehicle said before tearing up on the witness stand.
“They were doing that for a while and then they put a blanket covering her. That’s when I knew something was really wrong.”
An autopsy determined one of the two bullets fired hit Eishia in her left shoulder, where it travelled at a downward angle and stopped at her spine.
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The girl who was in the vehicle recalled the fear and panic that set in when the group realized police were in pursuit. “We were all saying ‘We’re going to get caught,”’ she said.
Eventually, police were able to surround the Jeep after it had crashed and shots were fired. The girl testified officers smashed the windows and began hitting Eishia and the front passenger with batons, while those in the back seat were dragged out.
She said once police had her handcuffed and placed against a cruiser, an officer punched her in the face.
A male youth who was also sitting in the back seat of the Jeep told the inquest fear drove the group to try to evade arrest.
“We didn’t want to get locked up. People are panicking. We’re all young and scared,” the youth said on the stand while wearing a black T-shirt with Eishia’s photo alongside the words ‘Justice for Eishia.’
At one point during the chase, the youth said a police vehicle hit the Jeep prompting Eishia to lose control, jump a boulevard twice and hit the truck.
His testimony also had to be stopped as he described seeing blood coming out of Eishia’s mouth after she was pulled from the vehicle. A young woman from the gallery consoled the youth while he teared up.
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A second male youth who was sitting in the front passenger seat during the chase told the court the whole incident was a blur and it wouldn’t be until later that he realized Eishia had been shot.
The inquest has already heard from several officers involved.
Police Const. Kyle Pradinuk testified last week he fired two shots at Eishia because he believed fellow officers could have been hit by the moving Jeep.
Cellphone video evidence captured by a witness appears to show the Jeep backing away from the officers during the encounter. All three youths said they didn’t recall the vehicle moving backwards.
Eishia was one of three First Nations people killed in a 10-day period in Winnipeg. The teen’s death sparked protests and calls for a public inquiry into police-related deaths of Indigenous Peoples after Manitoba’s police watchdog did not recommend charges against Pradinuk.
The inquest is examining whether the use of force was appropriate and whether systemic racism played a role in the death, because the suspects were identified as Indigenous.
I feel bad that one of you has passed but you need to take responsibility for your actions, what about how the people in the liquor store felt. if this were a non-aboriginal person this wouldn’t be about racism. This situation is about what you did and the outcome. Stop using your race as an excuse for your action’s.
Love the bottles or ciroc and fireball. Were those the one’s they stole?