Jack Danylchuk
Northern News Services
Friday, July 20, 2007

YELLOWKNIFE - A youth who died in the North Arm of Great Slave Lake while performing community service work at the Sacred Fire Healing Camp was not there on a court order, says NWT Coroner Percy Kinney.

That means an inquest into the death of Randy Leisk Jr. is not mandatory, Kinney explained Thursday.

Volunteers recovered the bodies of the15-year-old and Michael Luzny, 18, last week near North Arm Park. The two - both from Yellowknife -- disappeared the week before after they abandoned a boat that ran out of gas and attempted to swim to shore.

Kinney said he is still investigating whether a youth service worker approved the stay at the camp where the youths were left without adult supervision.

"If permission was given, then there is an onus on the government to ensure that there were proper procedures in place for the operation of the camp," Kinney said.

After reading transcripts of court proceedings, Kinney concluded that the boy went to the camp at the request of his parents, Darlene and Randy Leisk Sr.

"The judge said if he wants to go to this camp to perform his community service, he may do so, but (the judge didn't order) him to go there," Kinney said after examining a transcript from a June 11 court proceeding.

"This is not a custodial order, therefore an inquest is not mandatory. That doesn't mean I can't hold an inquest, but it would be discretionary."

The original court document signed on Jan. 19 by Judge Bernadette Schmaltz, acknowledges that Leisk was attending the camp. On June 11, the presiding judge gave the youth the option of performing community service work at Sacred Fire for failure to meet the terms of the original order.

The camp at Old Fort Rae operates as part of Nats'eju'Dahk'e, a healing society headed by Bertha Blondin.

Kinney said the court document generated by the June 11 hearing mentions the healing camp, but does not order the youth to go there to perform community service work

"The only question remaining is whether a representative of the justice department agreed that the work could be performed at the camp," Kinney said.

"If permission was given then there is an onus on the government to ensure that camp was properly run. If not, I would still want to know what the camp provides. The issue of safety remains. It doesn't matter why the kid was there. It could be a summer camp. There should be rules no matter whose camp it is."

Kinney said those questions may still prompt him to call an inquest but the issue might also be resolved in a coroner's report.

"If the government is going to be using the camp as a tool then there is some onus to make sure safety protocols are in place," he said.

Justice department officials said the government does not regulate youth camps like Sacred Fire. It dropped plans to open its own wilderness camps for youths in 2004 after changes to youth justice legislation emphasized diversion to community-based corrections over detention.