Island man dies in police shooting

Byron Debassige shot in Toronto after lemon theft

by Alicia McCutcheon

TORONTO-On Saturday, February 17, Byron Debassige, a young First Nations man originally hailing from M'Chigeeng, was shot dead by Toronto Police Services officers in Oriole Park.

According to an article in The Toronto Star, Mr. Debassige was chased out of a nearby market after he had stolen a few lemons. Passersby saw him in the park, apparently drunk, singing and asking people for change-all without incident.

When the two officers who were dispatched to investigate the robbery found Mr. Debassige in the park, a confrontation ensued and, according to reports, a 10-centimetre-long knife was brandished by the man.

Witnesses heard the policemen yelling for Mr. Debassige to put the knife down followed by four gunshots. Mr. Debassige was taken to St. Michael's Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

As Mr. Debassige was shot and killed by police, the case has been taken over by the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), which investigates all police shootings.

Jennifene Debassige, Byron's mother, described her son as "very ambitious" and the kind of person who always put his friends and family first.

Ms. Debassige said her son had hopes of running his own deejaying business in the city as he had a passion for music. In fact, he had just started taking classes at the Toronto School of Business to further those dreams.

"It was not a good thing," she said, of what the police had done to her son. Ms. Debassige would not comment on the SIU probe on the advice of her lawyer.

"At times, he had a rough time of it," said his mother. "He was confused. He was there (Toronto) all by himself. We always had to encourage him to move out on his own-he was 28."

"He was a dreamer," Ms. Debassige added. "He had a lot of things he wanted to do."

Kimberly Murray, executive director of Aboriginal Legal Services of Toronto (ALST), said Mr. Debassige was well known to the staff and they are grieving his loss.

"We are certainly looking forward to hearing from the SIU," Ms. Murray said, noting that it could be months before the investigation concludes. "This is the second police shooting of an Aboriginal person in four months."

ALST has dealt with many cases of police officers using excessive force or allegedly beating up their clients, but she said she's alarmed at what she calls a "new trend" in the use of guns. Her organization is currently looking to find out how many other Aboriginal people have been shot in the past three to four years.

Ms. Murray said ALST has not taken a position on the use of tasers but calls this a case where they could have been used.

"Tasers seem to be an alternative to lethal force for only certain communities," she said. "Apparently, Byron's life wasn't worthy of that."

In a February 24 editorial in The Toronto Star, the writer questioned whether the police officers at the scene could have employed alternative conflict resolution techniques, rather than drawing their guns.

Instead of drawing their guns "...could the officers not have kept Debassige at bay while awaiting backup?" the writer queries.

"Could the police not have brought in an expert to 'talk down' a person in Debassige's state?"

"Even in a big city, it is hard to believe that such a bizarre chain of events had to end the way it did," the editorial continued. "Life shouldn't be that cheap."

The funeral for Mr. Debassige was held in M'Chigeeng on Saturday.

Central apt. project nearing full tenancy

by Jim Moodie

MINDEMOYA-A campaign to secure tenants for a proposed seniors' apartment building in Mindemoya continues, with about two-thirds of the units now spoken for and the net cast wider to fill the remaining vacancies.

"It's progressing slowly," said Ron Becks of the Central Manitoulin Seniors' Housing Committee. "It's winter, and some people are kind of reluctant because it's a proposed development. But we're very optimistic; I don't think we'll have any problem getting close to the maximum."

The facility, to be constructed on Highway 551 across from the Mindemoya Hospital, would feature 22 two-bedroom apartments, each renting for $1,200 per month.

"It sounds like a lot of money," admitted Mr. Becks. "But that includes everything (except for phone, Internet and TV service) and when you look at heat and water costs for your own home, or what apartments are going for in cities, it's really not that bad a deal at all."

The developer, Build North Construction of Sudbury, remains committed to the project, said Mr. Becks, provided enough people sign up in advance.

Residents of Central Manitoulin had the first opportunity to put their names on the dotted line, but since space remains in the proposed complex, the committee has extended the invitation to others across Manitoulin and even beyond our shores. "We're also advertising off the Island as well," said Mr. Becks. "And we're getting some responses."

He suspects that when people see more activity in the spring and a physical structure beginning to take shape, any unit that remains vacant will quickly get snapped up. "Once the bricks start going up, we won't have trouble filling the place," he opined.

At the moment, the 10-acre field that has been secured for the project by the Township of Central Manitoulin remains an undisturbed plane of snow, but a backhoe is parked on the side of the property, poised to begin some digging.

"They'll be doing some soil samples to begin with," explained Mr. Becks. "The contractor doesn't seem to be too worried about depth but they just have to do engineering work to check for drainage and see what type of foundation to put in."

The machine has been stationed here for some time, without much hint of movement, but the holdup in activity isn't related to the weather or the extended search for tenants, said Mr. Becks. It's more to do with scheduling. "It's just been a matter of getting the engineer and the backhoe operator coordinated," the housing committee rep said.

Presuming a few more people sign up for an apartment in coming weeks, construction on the facility would begin shortly after the snow melts and wrap up by this Christmas or early January of next year.

Mr. Becks said that interest is simultaneously being gauged for the development's second phase-an assisted living complex, envisioned for the same site-and the hope is that work on this complementary building would commence shortly after the apartment project gets under way.

"I think this is really the most important part," said Mr. Becks of the assisted-living facility. "A place where people have access to meals or partial meals, a nurse, and other services, so that if they break a hip or have a walker or wheelchair, they can still live on their own but with some support."

The realization of this second phase depends largely, however, on how much enthusiasm is shown for the first. "If we get 100 percent occupancy for the apartments, this would be an indication that the developer can go to the next stage," said Mr. Becks. "If we get enough of a response, the contractor could even start the second phase while working on the first."

Those who are interested in an apartment but remain a bit leery of committing money at this point needn't worry about losing their investment, stressed Mr. Becks. "There's no risk," he emphasized. "For anybody who signs up, the money goes into a trust fund, and if something were to happen, it would all be refunded." 

Mr. Becks and his group of housing advocates remain convinced that there is both a need and appetite for this type of development in the municipality. "It's really required," he said. "A lot of people have moved away because they couldn't look after their home or cottage, or had health problems. We hope to relieve some of that need."

Those interested in learning more about the project, or booking space in the proposed apartment complex, should contact Paul Atkinson at 377-7250 or Doug Lanktree at 377-4718.

Knife-bearing student calmed by_staff

by Jim Moodie

M'CHIGEENG-A tense situation was deftly defused at Manitoulin Secondary School (MSS) last week as staff talked a knife-toting teen into peacefully submitting to police.

The student was observed in a hallway during class hours on February 19, behaving in an agitated manner and perceived to be in possession of a knife.

"Two student witnesses saw a knife and reported this to a staff member, who quickly came and told administration," said Principal Laurie Zahnow. "We confirmed that the student indeed had knife, and immediately started our emergency procedure for a weapon in the building."

The school has a plan in place for such predicaments, noted the principal, and practices it frequently, although an actual situation involving a weapon is exceedingly rare. "An incident like this is the first that I've experienced since I've been here," she said.

In this case, the appropriate measure was "to contact police, and then ask staff to close and lock their doors to not let students out," said the principal. Teachers promptly complied with the directive to secure their classrooms, and officers were on the scene in short order, with members of the UCCM Tribal Police being the first to arrive.

Meanwhile, two teachers took it upon themselves to approach the distraught individual. "No-one was called upon to do this, but a couple of teachers happened to jump right in," said Ms. Zahnow. "They were amazing. They de-escalated the anxiety of the young man."

Police were already in the building by that point, and "were prepared to apprehend him," said Ms. Zahnow. "But a teacher was able to calm him down enough to bring him downstairs to the police."

The boy, who can't be named under the provisions of the Young Offenders Act, was new at the school and unfamiliar to most students and staff. "He came for the second semester and had only been present in school four days since then," said the principal. "So we don't really know him at all."

Given his short time at MSS, Principal Zahnow is confident that this wasn't a case of the student developing a grudge against a particular teacher or fellow student. "I'm quite certain he wasn't targeting anyone," she said.

Nor did the teachers who stepped in to deal with the boy feel particularly endangered. While the student was acting belligerently at first, he wasn't brandishing his knife or threatening them. After a bit of discussion, the student settled down.

"There were no injuries and the student was very co-operative with police," said Al Boyd, community services officer with the OPP. "The knife, which was a folding knife, was seized."

Following an investigation, police have charged the youth with possession of a dangerous weapon and carrying a concealed weapon. The student was taken into custody and appeared in Wikwemikong bail court last Wednesday, with an appearance in Gore Bay Youth Court to occur later.

Principal Zahnow commended both staff and students for their quick-thinking response to the unusual situation at the school. "It was very brave of the two students to come forward and say that the boy had a knife," she remarked. "And the teachers here are wonderful. They followed the procedure to the letter."

Staff were called into the library after school for a debriefing session, and the two students who alerted school brass of the situation were additionally supported following the incident, as the pair remained "a bit on edge," said Ms. Zahnow.

Most students, though, were unaware that anything out of the ordinary was happening, and likely thought the lockdown was just another emergency drill, said the principal. Many have likely since heard that there was an offender in the school with a knife, she allowed, but will hopefully feel reassured that the situation was dealt with appropriately.

That's certainly the principal's assessment. "It was handled very well and quickly," she said. "The staff co-operated fully to ensure the safety of students."

Wiky offers to take lead in First Nations planning

new wind power initiatives

by Melissa Cooper

SAULT STE. MARIE-On February 21-22, chiefs from different regions of Ontario gathered in the Sault to discuss the importance of developing renewable energy projects in their First Nation communities.

Approximately 100 people attended the second annual First Nations Energy Alliance (FNEA) Forum at the Great Northern Hotel in Sault Ste. Marie with Wikwemikong Chief Robert Corbiere and M'Chigeeng Chief Isadora Bebamash in attendance from Manitoulin Island.

"First Nations in Ontario have been working on the Energy Alliance since 2006 with specific goals and objectives with regard to developing renewable energy projects within our communities," Chief Robert Corbiere said. "Since that time there are now 18 members and interest continues to grow."

The FNEA was established in the spring of 2006 when a handful of First Nations met in southern Ontario to discuss the opportunity and benefits of working together on issues of similar interest: energy development for their communities.

During this stage of development Wikwemikong has agreed to take the lead in facilitating the operations of the alliance.

"Whatever issues we bring up as issues of contention including transmission, connection and distribution as well as pricing, will be addressed for and by our group," said Grant Taibossigai, FNEA member and project manager for the M'Chigeeng Wind Project.

The main goal of the FNEA is to advance issues of common interest in the development of renewable energy projects for member First Nations.

Ontario's 20-year energy plan currently awaits approval from the Ontario Energy Board (OEB). The plan includes $60 billion in generation and approximately $7 billion in transmission projects throughout the province. Renewable energy is a major component of the plan to reduce coal-fired power generation.

Day 1 of the forum included presenters from Hydro One, the Ontario Power Authority, numerous renewable energy development companies, as well as Ontario Regional Chief Angus Toulouse.

"The Chiefs of Ontario office will work with the FNEA to support its goals and objectives on a political level with the Province of Ontario," said Chief Toulouse.

On the afternoon of Day 2, a tour of the largest windmill project in Canada was provided to interested delegates. The Prince Wind Farm, which is owned and operated by Brookfield Power, has 126 towers situated just outside the Sault along the shores of Lake Superior.

"The tour itself was great-at one point we could see 10 or 12 turbines, Mr. Taibossigai said. "This was the first time I saw turbines in person since working on this project for three and a half years."

Funding for the 2008 forum came from the Ministry of Energy, the Ontario Power Association (OPA), Hatch Energy, Gemini Power Group, Golder and Associates, Sky Power Corp., Brookfield Power, Invenergy Canada and Sou'wester Technologies.

Plans for next year include another forum as well as an annual general meeting.

For more information on the FNEA visit www.firstnationsenergyalliance.org or call (705)859-3122, ext. 309/233.

EDITORIAL
Why was Byron Debassige shot, killed by police?

A young man from M'Chigeeng, living in Toronto, is shot by a member of the Toronto Police Services after he pilfers a couple of lemons from a convenience store.

The police became involved in the fracas after the robbery and, after the shooting, 28-year-old Byron Debassige is pronounced dead at St. Michael's Hospital.

We have no idea what the police investigation of the circumstances surrounding Mr. Debassige's death will reveal.

What we can predict, however, is that the measures that led to the M'Chigeeng man's demise will be found to be, literally, overkill.

Late in 2007, when a Polish visitor in an agitated state was shot with a taser gun at the Vancouver International Airport and died shortly after, we heard from many police forces (and from a letter to the editor in this paper) that tasers are benign, compared to the alternative.

The late Byron Debassige may have also been in an agitated state (although the Toronto Star quotes a passerby who had seen him panhandling that he was quiet and respectful to those who refused him a handout) but we must know why he needed to be fatally shot, rather than, for example, 'tasered.'

Surely police must have at their disposal a myriad of other methods of subduing a man, alone, brandishing a knife with (apparently) a 10-centimetre blade. And if he had to be shot, why wasn't he merely wounded?

Incidents like this one, although blessedly not commonplace, have the effect of suggesting to the large First Nations community resident in Toronto that they may have a better-than-average chance of being injured during a confrontation with police in their city.

Is this a fair response? Perhaps not, but putting ourselves in the late Mr. Debassige's shoes, that response to future contacts with police would come easily.

The incident that led to Byron Debassige's sad death must be publicly examined and all of the circumstances aired, equally publicly, and as quickly as possible.

Presumably at the very least we can expect recommendations for alternate means of dealing with people in Mr. Debassige's state of mind.

Letters to the Editor

Global warming just one part of water crisis

Diversions, over-dredging should not be discounted

To the Expositor:

I read with interest your article in the February 20 Expositor ("Global warming deemed culprit in decline of Lake Huron"). With the stroke of a pen you virtually set aside the idea that withdrawals such as the Chicago diversion and the over-dredging of the St Clair River are significant contributors to the drop in Lake Huron levels, by casting the majority of the blame onto global warming.

How "human" it is to want to find a single factor responsible for each major environmental catastrophe. While we chose to blame only the sea lamprey for the lake trout fishery collapse, commercial fishermen were setting pond nets around spawning beds and lake trout eggs were washing out through the scuppers. We blame the collapse of the forest industry on the high Canadian dollar, while a flight over Northern Ontario reveals gross over cutting and lack of sufficient timely regeneration.

The Colorado River no longer reaches its mouth because of so many upstream withdrawals. While everyone looks for someone else to blame, each factor contributes to the problem and invariably it is the cumulative effect that tips the scale. Certainly global warming is a factor and a major concern, but how does global warming explain the fact that the Lake Huron level dropped four feet in three years, has never recovered, and is now at a record low? How can we brush aside the knowledge that the Chicago diversion and the St. Clair River over-dredging, between them , withdraw five billion gallons of water from the Lake Huron/Michigan basin each day? If we're looking to cast blame, let's hear it for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers! And while we're at it, let's hear it for ourselves-for not speaking out and demanding that our politicians get off their cumulative duff!

Mike Wilton

Dominion Bay

Jared Nardi

Boarderline

Little Current

I'm your neighbour

To most teenagers in Grade 12, high school graduation is an opportunity to leave their hometown and explore the outside world. But Jared Nardi isn't your typical student. Instead he is a unique individual who would rather mold his own form of enjoyment on Manitoulin Island than follow others.

Along with school, Mr. Nardi has been working various shifts during the past five months at Boarderline in Little Current. His responsibilities at the store include organizing clothes and other products, keeping the work environment clean and providing info to customers about certain items in the store.

Some may think the part-time job is a tool to help him save money, but the position at the store means a lot more to Mr. Nardi.

"I absolutely love my job," he said. "My boss is great and he's really good to me. I just love the clothes and everything else about the store."

Who wouldn't enjoy Boarderline, a hip and down-to-earth store that sells everything from skateboards to the latest fashions in clothing?

Despite the fact that some of the items are geared towards a younger crowd, Mr. Nardi said there's something for everyone in the store.

"It doesn't matter what age you are," he said. "You will definitely find something you like because not everything in the store is flashy and skate-oriented."

Mr. Nardi and his family moved to Manitoulin Island after his dad got a job offer. Fourteen years later, he is still enjoying the peace and tranquility the area has to offer, even though his hobbies associate with loud noises.

"I play lot of music, listen to a lot of music and just enjoy music in general," he explained. "I also like to hang out with friends and enjoy the associations music has with them."

In regards to his personal music taste, he said he doesn't stick to one genre. Instead, he prefers exploring the world of music because he likes to keep an open mind.

When asked what he truly thinks of the store he works at, Mr. Nardi was able to come up with one descriptive word.

"Awesome," he laughed. "Boarderline is just truly awesome."

Not only does such a description suit the store well, but it also suits Mr. Nardi and other students who continue to help make Manitoulin Island an interesting place to visit.

Shopping at Island businesses like Boarderline creates lasting employment for people like Jared Nardi.