TORONTO – An inquest jury has heard the much-criticized warden at the prison where Ashley Smith choked to death did her best under difficult circumstances.
Her lawyer told jurors that Cindy Berry was only at the prison in Kitchener, Ont., for about three months and had no experience with women offenders.
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Berry found a “fragile” institution with only one senior manager in a permanent position, he said in closing arguments.
Smith’s arrival with her serious self-harming behaviour only made things worse.
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The lawyer urged jurors against a finding of homicide in the teen’s death six years ago, saying Berry “gave her very best.”
He also repeated Berry’s contention that she never gave orders to guards to stay out of Smith’s cell as long as the teen was still breathing.
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