A coroner’s inquest has been scheduled for a Wolastoqey inmate who died in January 2022 after a brief hospital stay, due to what his family says was COVID-19.
In a release Tuesday, New Brunswick’s Department of Justice and Public Safety said the inquest into Skyler Brent Sappier-Soloman’s death will take place May 16-19 at the Saint John Law Courts.
Sappier-Soloman, a 28-year-old father of two, was an inmate at the Saint John Regional Correctional Centre. He was taken to hospital on Jan. 29 of that year and died on Jan. 31.
The department said in February 2022 that an inquest would be held, but the dates and location were not made public until Tuesday. A coroner’s inquest is a formal proceeding that allows for the public presentation of all evidence relating to a death.
“The presiding coroner and a jury will publicly hear evidence from witnesses to determine the facts surrounding Sappier-Soloman’s death,” the release said. “The jury will have an opportunity to make recommendations aimed at preventing deaths under similar circumstances.”
The province has not reported Sappier-Soloman’s cause of death, but his family told Global News last year that he died of COVID-19.
He had been serving a three-month sentence when he contracted the disease. His older sister, Raeann Michaud, claimed that her brother had been complaining for days about not being able to breathe properly.
At one point, she said he was locked in his cell for 10 hours while he begged for medical help.
“He was in respiratory distress for days, not being able to breathe good,” Michaud said at the time. “If he had gotten (to the hospital) sooner, he might still be alive.”
At the time of his death, there was a COVID-19 outbreak at the Saint John Regional Correctional Centre.
According to a letter Sappier-Soloman wrote to his mother shortly before he died, he was jailed for breach of probation after he spat on a security guard at a hospital while receiving mental health treatment.
In the letter dated Jan. 14, viewed by Global News, Sappier said he was getting clean from drugs and he was looking forward to his release from jail, which, at that point, was supposed to be in 27 days.
Sappier-Soloman said he hoped to get a spot at a shelter when he was out so he could settle down and do his taxes. He said he was looking forward to seeing his son, and asked his family to send him pictures of his daughter.
“I’m staying out of s–t here so don’t worry I love you guys,” he wrote.
He died 17 days later.
The province has previously declined to comment on Sappier-Soloman’s cause of death, citing confidentiality.