Brandy Vittrekwa death prompts Kwanlin Dün safety initiatives

It was a crime that left a community shaken and on edge. One year later, the Kwanlin Dün First Nation is still working to quell those feelings by focusing on safety initiatives.

On Dec. 8, 2014, the body of Brandy Vittrekwa, 17, was found on a walking trail in the McIntyre subdivision of Whitehorse. In April, a 15-year-old boy was arrested and charged with her murder.

Vittrekwa was living in Whitehorse with her family but was originally from Fort McPherson, N.W.T.

"Of course people feel unsettled that this happened in their backyard," said Jeanie Dendys, Kwanlin Dün's director of justice.

"This is definitely an area that is highly sensitive, and you know we all have personal feelings about the loss of a young life in our community."

The First Nation conducted an assessment last spring to find ways to make the community safer. That prompted work to remove massive piles of brush and debris from community trails, to improve visibility.

Better lighting, slower traffic, cameras

Dendys said there is more work to be done. The First Nation is hiring a security co-ordinator to work on future initiatives such as, "better lighting throughout the community, reducing speed limits and putting in ways to slow traffic down in the community," Dendys said.

"We are anticipating, potentially, cameras throughout the community. So it's very detailed, there's a lot to it."

The trail where Vittrekwa's body was found is now blocked by a pile of snow.

The First Nation is not formally marking the anniversary of her death in any way, but Vittrekwa will be among those remembered at a gathering this weekend in Whitehorse, for families of missing and murdered aboriginal women.

The teen charged in Vittrekwa's death is scheduled to enter a plea in court on Dec. 17.