Inquest held next year into death of RCMP prisoner

PENTICTON — A coroner inquest will be held in February into the death of a man who died in Penticton RCMP custody.

Steven Joseph Scott, 30, of no fixed address, died Aug. 10 in a cell at the Penticton RCMP detachment. Scott has been charged in the past for public disturbance, resisting arrest, being unlawfully at large and possessing stolen property. The Coroners Act makes an inquest mandatory in almost all cases in which a person dies while in police custody.

Coroner Larry Marzinzik and a jury will hear evidence from witnesses to determine the facts surrounding this death. While the jury may not, by law, make any findings of legal responsibility, it will have the opportunity to make recommendations aimed at preventing deaths under similar circumstances in the future.

The inquest will take place from Feb. 17 through 21 at the Penticton courthouse.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Shannon Quesnel at squesnel@infotelnews.ca, call 250-488-3065 or tweet @shannonquesnel1