Coroner's inquest into UVic student's overdose death begins today
Sidney McIntyre-Starko, 18, died in January 2024 after overdosing on the Victoria campus
A coroner's inquest begins Monday into the death of Sidney McIntyre-Starko, an 18-year-old who died after an overdose in a dorm room at the University of Victoria in January of 2024.
The inquest was ordered by the provincial government after news of McIntrye-Starko's death broke last spring, leading to a public outcry.
In an open letter issued at the time, her parents, Dr. Caroline McIntyre, an emergency room physician, and Kenton Starko wrote that she suffered a cardiac arrest due to fentanyl poisoning in the early evening of Jan. 23, 2024, and died in hospital five days later.
They claimed campus security did not immediately call 911 or administer naloxone to their daughter and two other students.
"They denied her the lifesaving care she needed until it was too late," they wrote. "Our daughter's death was preventable."
Two other students who overdosed alongside McIntyre-Starko were revived.
Independent report finds errors led to death
An independent report ordered by the university and released last month found that McIntyre-Starko would likely still be alive if mistakes had not been made that night.
Former Abbotsford police chief Bob Rich wrote that campus security officers who responded to calls for help didn't recognize that McIntyre-Starko had classic overdose symptoms: reduced consciousness, depressed breathing, and pinpoint pupils.
That led to a delay in administering naloxone — something he said could have saved her life.
Coroner and jury will hear from witnesses
Coroner's inquests are public inquiries that aim to determine the circumstances surrounding a death and make recommendations so that similar deaths don't happen in the future.
They do not assign blame.
Coroner Larry Marzinzik and a jury will meet in Burnaby and hear from witnesses over the next three weeks.
With files from Jon Hernandez, Emily Fagan, and Moira Wyton