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Raphael André: A mother tells an inquest in Quebec that she cannot understand how her son could die in the cold Achi-News

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More than three years after her son’s death, Susan Chemgnish still can’t understand how he could have been left to die in the cold outside a homeless shelter in a big city like Montreal.

Chemaganish told the coroner’s office Wednesday that her son Raphael AndrĂ© grew up in the forest with his family in northern Quebec and was used to cold weather.

She said that in her village people are not left outside in the winter. “It’s cold in our community,” she said. “When someone knocks, we open the door and let them in.”

Coroner Stephanie Gamache is leading the inquest into the death of Andre, who was originally from Matimcoosh-Lac John, near the Labrador border. He was 51 when he died in January 2021 inside a portable toilet close to a Montreal homeless shelter he visited.

The death came after Quebec imposed a curfew to curb the spread of COVID-19, and after AndrĂ©’s regular shelter stopped nighttime services due to a plumbing problem and the outbreak of the virus.

After the death, a legal clinic representing homeless people sought and received a court order exempting homeless people from detention. The provincial government then agreed to formalize the exemption.

In the investigation, which began in May, dozens of witnesses were heard, including police officers, health and social services workers and indigenous leaders.

Chemgnish testified Wednesday alongside Andre’s brother, Ghislaine Andre, as well as another family member who stepped down for her.

She told Gamache that she hopes the investigation will lead to more spaces and better care for homeless people, noting that she visited the shelter where her son was staying and saw rollaway beds without sheets.

Both she and Andre’s brother questioned why there weren’t enough places for people to go, and wondered how they got enough to eat.

“Montreal is great, why can’t they find a home for them?” she asked.

Gamache agreed with the mother about the need for more services, but reminded her that more than 108,000 people had benefited from a warming tent set up in a square in downtown Montreal in Andre’s memory.

“It shows how much Raphael touched people,” the coroner said. Chemgnish, in turn, expressed gratitude for the investigation and the coroner’s efforts to improve conditions for the homeless.

“She felt she was alone,” the translator said.

The investigation is expected to be completed later this month.


This report by The Canadian Press was first published on June 5, 2024.

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