57-year-old says he was denied medication for 21 days in custody
Family says attempts to get prescription medication to their loved one in custody were blocked
A 57-year-old man fought for 21 days to receive his prescription medication while in custody, according to two brothers from Winnipeg who we are calling David and Richard to protect David's identity.
In September 2014, David was arrested by Winnipeg police and taken to the Winnipeg Remand Centre (WRC).
David has bipolar disorder and after days without his medication, he started to deteriorate while in custody.
"Your mind goes into a buzz. It's like a tv that's off channel, it just buzzes. You can't add one plus one together," said David of the days he went without medication.
David contacted CBC after reading the story of Errol Green, a 26-year-old inmate at the Winnipeg Remand Centre, who was without access to his epilepsy medication for three days while in custody. He later died.
Family tried to deliver medication
When David went into custody at the Winnipeg Remand Centre, his brother Richard attempted to drop off David's prescription medication and eye glasses. He was told by front desk staff that neither the glasses nor medication could be transferred to David.
"I kept thinking, how's he supposed to read stuff — find stuff? And just not having his glasses, not feeling well, not having his medication, I was under the impression that somebody was following up on that," said Richard.
Richard is a mental health professional who worked in the federal corrections system. Because of his professional experience, he assumed his brother would receive medical help.
"By the time [inmates] come to the federal system they've already served time in remand, they've been to court, and by the time we get them in the federal system there's usually a lot of information pertaining to medications, mental health issues, physical issues," said Richard.
WRC refuses CBC requests for interview
The WRC has denied repeated requests from the CBC for an interview, but according to a provincial spokesperson, protocol requires inmates to be assessed by a nurse when they are admitted to the WRC.
David said he was never assessed by a nurse at the WRC. His first assessment by a nurse occurred three days after his arrest after being transferred to Milner Ridge Correctional Centre (MRCC). Even then, his medication was denied, he said.
My brother suffered and suffered.- Richard
"At Milner I met a nurse...and the only thing he was interested in was weighing me. And I kept telling him, 'I need my meds, I need my meds, I can't think.' And still it took me over two weeks at Milner to start my meds," said David.
WRC failed to notify David's family when he was transferred to MRCC. When Richard learned of the transfer he filled out an application to see his brother, but was told it would be 30 days before a visit could be authorized.
"I can only imagine, working in the field that I'm working in, without medication, whether it's depression medication, whether it's anxiety medication, whether it's bipolar medication, people tend to deteriorate and sometimes it takes such a long time for people to recover from that. And it's also a time that they can be very vulnerable to suicide," said Richard, adding he noted the deterioration of his brother.
Eyes infected
David says he was transferred to MRCC and immediately thrown into solitary confinement, unable to contact his family. He was denied medication and the saline solution that he needed to clean his contact lenses.
He had not received his prescription glasses, despite his brother leaving them with corrections officers at WRC, he said.
"By the time I was released my one eye was completely [infected] closed, like crystalized and yellow. And my other eye was partially closed because I refused to take out my contacts and throw them out because I didn't have any glasses. And you don't want to be in jail and you can't see," said David.
In the end, David befriended a nurse at MRCC who was able to advocate for him to receive his medication, 21 days after his arrest.
"This is for someone who is 57-years-old, who has never had any problems with the law, and who is in the system for the first time and terrified, just traumatically terrified by the whole experience," said Richard.
Richard said the story of Errol Green triggered concerns for him over medical protocols within the provincial system.
"I think it's just a lack of doing the screening on the front end, whether it's medical, whether it's mental health. Something is going wrong in the system and this is one of the consequences. My brother suffered and suffered and deteriorated, and this gentleman [Errol Green] died," said Richard.
If you have a story you would like to share about the corrections system, email kim.kaschor@cbc.ca.