Sarah Lewis Speaks Out

By Submitted Article

The following  article comes from Sara Lewis, (in photo at right) the widow of Donald Dwayne Lewis, who was shot to death by Constable Cole Brewer  in McLeese Lake  on August 13th, 2006.

This week I was surrounded by the love and support of two brave and war weary soldiers, Linda Bush and Dolores Young, tromping through the muck of an ancient government system called a ' coroners inquest'.  There was no macho bravado here, only the tears and heartache of mothers who had watched their sons die in police related killings without cause. Now I was to join the ranks of people who fight against an system designed to protect itself. 

The 'coroners inquest' is deemed fact finding and not fault finding.  But all through the proceedings, you could hear the underlying questions:  Why did these men die?  Whose fault was it?  We are presented with the facts, but no guilt is established. 

Coroner Shane Demeyer leads the inquest, sitting quietly at the front, directing the show, but gives no results or directives at the end.  We swear on the Bible, we give our testimony, we challenge others in their testimony, but the rcmp still walk away, exonerated from any fault once again. 

The reason these three men died?   Ian Bush, Don Lewis, and Kevin St.Arnaud  all were deemed to be resisting arrest, a common reaction when your freedom is about to be taken away.  The average mind of a human, when placed in a state of desperation or fear, usually reacts in a similar way.  They run or retaliate.  Ask yourself, what would you do?

Hiding behind the law of using 'lethal force', an officer can exact any kind of behavior control that he wishes.  In the back of his mind, he knows that the gun remains in his power and can be used in extreme circumstances.  But what about these young boys, who already may have been known to police?  How do we know we are not dealing with an old grudge match from the past unless we look at the facts.  We've all seen power trips in our lives, and domination in the school yard.  Does it extend into adulthood?  You bet.

Don Lewis had crossed the border numerous times, and without the permission of the government.  Each time the police tried to apprehend him, he was able to slip away.  This made them pursue him with even greater determination.  Fueled by an angry and spiteful ex-husband, the chase went on.   

Through a series of consequences Don had been killed.  Did the police know that Don would run and seek to scare him?  Why did the rcmp pursue him with such a vengence?  Many Americans reside in Canada illegally.  Most of them are living peaceful lives, fleeing their country from fear of being drafted.

We learned this week of the many arrests and deportations Don had to endure.  He was treated harshly without reason.  Why are the police allowed to abuse prisoners?  Don was deported and left in Blaine, with no money, ID, no drivers license, not even a coat.  How was he supposed to survive?  Ask yourself this: would you not also return to your wife and home you had made?

It gets down to Human Rights, do we have the right to live in another country if we are legally married and applying for status as a Canadian?   Don was.   But we shouldn't have to die for it.

Email | Print | Facebook | Twitter | Digg | Del.icio.us