Family members of 21-year-old Jenna Sapporah Ostberg say she was a kind, wonderful woman who had plans to potentially build a career working with children. They have identified her as the woman who died early Saturday morning after Thunder Bay Police failed to respond to a 911 call about a domestic disturbance.Supplied
Ontario’s police watchdog is investigating the death of an Indigenous woman in Thunder Bay after the local service failed to respond to a 911 call about a domestic disturbance as well as a second follow-up call to “cancel” that request for help.
Family members have identified the woman who died early Saturday morning as 21-year-old Jenna Sapporah Ostberg, a member of Bearskin Lake First Nation and a recent graduate of the College Access Program at Confederation College.
The province’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU), which handles any case involving police that results in death, serious injury or allegations of sexual assault, on Wednesday announced its investigation into the Thunder Bay Police Service’s handling of Ms. Ostberg’s death.
The TBPS has long faced accusations of systemic racism and complaints that the deaths of Indigenous people are not adequately investigated in the city.
In a media release, the SIU said the TBPS received a 911 call about a domestic disturbance at a residence on Ray Boulevard at approximately 2 a.m. Officers did not respond to the scene, the SIU said.
A second 911 call was placed to “cancel” the earlier call for service. Officers again did not respond.
When a third 911 call was then placed from the residence – “to indicate the woman was found deceased in the home” – officers finally responded, and located the woman.
The SIU said two investigators and one forensic investigator have been assigned to the case, which will focus on the conduct of one “subject official.”
No charges have been announced in Ms. Ostberg’s death.
In an e-mail Thursday, TBPS spokesperson Matthew Vis declined to comment on the case, citing the SIU’s involvement. He said the service is “continuing to investigate the death and review the circumstances of the incident” and “is co-operating with the Special Investigations Unit as it conducts their investigation.”
Hunter Kell, a spokesperson for Solicitor-General Michael Kerzner, said Thursday that “when Ontarians call 911 they deserve a response. We have full confidence in the SIU to investigate this matter fully and look forward to their verdict.”
Ms. Ostberg’s father, Vincent Ostberg, told The Globe and Mail that his daughter was a kind and wonderful young woman who was working toward a future postsecondary education. Ms. Ostberg had plans to travel and potentially build a career working with children, and loved fashion, her father said. She was somewhat of a style influencer on social media, he added.
“She didn’t know what she wanted to be yet,” Mr. Ostberg said, “but I know that she had plans. … She wanted to see the Great Wall of China. The Eiffel Tower in Paris.”
Mr. Ostberg declined to comment Thursday on any specifics of the case, citing the continuing investigations into both his daughter’s death as well as into the police response. In the meantime, he said they were awaiting an autopsy and planning her funeral for next week.
“I can only hope that justice prevails,” he said.
Two high-profile reports by the province in 2018 revealed that systemic racism was heavily ingrained within the troubled TBPS’s ranks and its board. Dozens of sudden-death investigations of Indigenous people have been flagged for reinvestigation because of the level of negligence and incompetence in cases marred with discrimination.
Last spring, an expert panel echoed those concerns, finding systemic racism within the TBPS toward Indigenous people. The panel also found a “profound lack of trust” of the police by the Indigenous community.
The troubled service has also been under investigation by the Ontario Provincial Police since February, 2022, after the province’s Attorney-General asked the OPP to look into complaints filed to the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal and the Ontario Civilian Police Commission.
Last month, First Nations leaders in Northwestern Ontario expressed concerns about the TBPS’s missing-persons procedures after the sudden death of a local high-school student. The body of 14-year-old Mackenzie Moonias was found near the city’s marina area on Dec. 19, about eight kilometres from where she had been last seen the previous Wednesday. TBPS had issued a missing-persons release on the weekend, and a volunteer search party set out with hopes they would find the teenager safe.
Mr. Ostberg said his daughter’s case highlights these continuing issues, and the need for sensitivity training – not just by police, but all institutions. He does not want his daughter to become “just another nameless stat,” he said.
“She was a very caring human being who loved people. And this is important – that people see us that way,” Mr. Ostberg said. “My daughter was somebody who deserved to live.”
Molly Hayes