Regina mother 'disgusted' by coroner's report into teen's drowning death

She wants answers, but the mother of a 14-year-old boy who drowned in a creek in east Regina last May is not satisfied with the coroner’s report on his death.

The report, released publicly this week, says Haven Dubois drowned accidentally, but drug use was a “significant contributing factor”.

It outlines interviews with Haven’s friends who said they skipped a school job fair in the morning of May 20 and started smoking marijuana around 9 a.m. They said he started “freaking out” after smoking the drug, describing him spinning in circles and rolling on the ground.

One boy said he walked with Haven to a park around 10 a.m. and left him sitting on a bench while he went back to the high school to get his backpack and skateboard. When he got back, Haven was gone, but some of his clothes were on the bench. According to the report, another friend took the clothes to his home and told someone there he saw Haven walking by the creek. That’s when his mother began to search.

Richelle Dubois was the one who found her son unconscious in the creek. She was holding him in her arms when EMS arrived on the scene at 12:21 p.m. A bystander was attempting CPR. Haven was in cardiac arrest, but attempts to revive him continued until he was pronounced dead at the hospital at 1:29 p.m.

Since that day, Richelle has wanted answers about what happened to her son before he died. But she’s not happy with the report.

“I’m disgusted that they think that I’m going to be OK with their little two and a quarter page report,” she said.

“I’m not satisfied with what they had to say.”

She takes issue with the first line of report that describes the 911 call to report a youth found face down in the water.

“They’re saying he was face down in the water, that’s not how he was when I found him, so right off the hop, it’s not accurate,” Richelle said.

She says he was not face down, but lying on his left side. She claims that no one took a statement from her and that makes her question the full extent of the investigation.

“I need to make sure that they have done a proper investigation in order for me to be satisfied,” Richelle said.

She would not elaborate on what she believes is missing from the report or the investigation, only saying that it didn’t include some of the tips she had passed along to police.

“I don’t know right now what to believe, I know that there’s more to the story. I believe there is more to the story and I believe that they had their mind made up from day one as to what was happening,” Richelle said.

At first, Richelle says she didn’t believe her son was taking drugs, but she now admits she was naïve.

“After doing my own investigation with some of his friends I did find out that he has dabbled in it, he has tried it, so it was not his first time smoking marijuana,” she said.

The toxicology report on Haven’s body found the active components of marijuana. The coroner notes that the effects of marijuana can vary considerably and are subject to the age and experience of the user.

The coroner’s report states that “even in low doses, marijuana can precipitate a panic reaction and irrational behaviour”.

When asked if she believes that he was alone when he went to the creek, Richelle said she wouldn’t speculate right now. She wants to speak with police and see the full police report.

“All I know is that I need to make sure that the cops do a full investigation, a proper investigation,” she said.

Read the full coroner’s report below.