Family members absolve authorities of their brother’s demise

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This article was published 19/01/2017 (2643 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Family members of a man who died while in custody at the Winnipeg Remand Centre last September have gone public to absolve police or employees at the correctional facility of any blame.

Two sisters of Robert McAdam, who died after a short stint in the centre, told the Free Press Friday his death was a suicide that followed years of alcohol abuse.

McAdam, 53, had been linked to five deaths at the remand centre in 2016 that had been described as “suspicious.” An inquest has already been ordered into the death last May of Errol Greene, who died while in custody at the facility.

Two other men and a woman died in the centre last year under varying circumstances.

A Manitoba Corrections official Friday said no further details could be provided on the internal investigation into McAdam’s death, noting “the departmental review of all in-custody deaths at the Winnipeg Remand Centre is ongoing.”

However, both Colleen Hogue and Brenda Managh, sisters of McAdam, insist their brother’s death was self-inflicted. Although no autopsy results have been made public, Hogue and Managh said doctors have told them McAdam had consumed almost four litres of antifreeze before his arrest in early September.

The sisters said McAdam then walked outside his Maples-area home and intentionally created a disturbance so police would be called. He was arrested on the scene for outstanding warrants, they said, and taken immediately to the remand centre.

McAdam then fell into a coma, was taken to Health Sciences Centre and died two days later after being taken off life-support.

“We want it set straight that the remand centre had nothing to do with his death,” Hogue said Friday. “I don’t want the guards being portrayed as bad people not doing their jobs. I don’t want it looking like we’re putting blame on someone else.

“He had attempted suicide many times. This time, he succeeded.”

McAdam was one of seven siblings, who his sisters described as a “focused” and “hard-working” student while attending Daniel McIntyre Collegiate. McAdam was married and had several jobs, mostly in the position of supervisor until alcohol addiction took over, Managh said.

He lost the jobs and his marriage fell apart.

“He took to the bottle, and it just got worse and worse,” Hogue said.

The family tried to intervene on several occasions. McAdam tried to quit drinking with numerous stints at rehabilitation facilities. Nothing worked.

“He had too many demons he wanted to escape from,” Hogue said. “Everyone’s tried to help him. It got to the point he didn’t know what to do anymore.”

On the first weekend of September, McAdam set about making lists around his home: take out the garbage, pay bills, etc. The final item on the to-do list was “kill self.”

“And he’d had that highlighted,” Hogue said.

McAdam left his affairs in order, including his will and bills that needed to be paid.

Then he drank the antifreeze.

The sisters believe McAdam deliberately created a disturbance outside his home in order for the police to come and arrest him.

“He didn’t want to die in his house,” Hogue said.

McAdam’s sisters said they didn’t want to embarrass their dead brother. But they wanted to distance themselves from other cases of death at the remand centre where circumstances are more suspect.

“We don’t want to look like we’re trouble,” Hogue noted. “Some people blame the police for everything. We don’t want that. We want to put it to rest.”

The sisters said there was some blessing in McAdam’s passing.

“I’m relieved that he’s at peace,” Hogue said. “He’s not fighting any more demons. He lost the battle, but now he doesn’t have to fight anymore.”

randy.turner@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @randyturner15