Inquest to review death of Ronald Bobbie, Selkirk Mental Health Centre patient
CBC News | Posted: January 4, 2016 7:54 PM | Last Updated: January 4, 2016
Ronald Bobbie, 59, died after being found in Red River in September 2014
Manitoba officials are making preparations for an inquest into the drowning death of a patient from the Selkirk Mental Health Centre in 2014.
A standing hearing will be held next month to determine who can take part in the inquest, which will examine the circumstances surrounding the death of 59-year-old Ronald Bobbie.
Bobbie had left the Selkirk-based mental health facility, where he was living, without the necessary approvals, according to the province.
He left his mother's home in Winnipeg to take a bus back to Selkirk on Sept. 26, 2014, but later that day he was found in the Red River north of the Disraeli Bridge.
Emergency crews took Bobbie to hospital, but he could not be resuscitated. The cause of death was confirmed as drowning.
Bobbie's medical history included "bipolar affective disorder, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and previous suicide attempts," the province said in a news release Monday.
The province's chief medical examiner has called the inquest under the Fatality Inquiries Act to find out what, if anything, could be done to prevent similar deaths in the future.
Individuals or groups that want to have standing in the inquest have until Jan. 18 to apply. The standing hearing will be held Feb. 1 at the Winnipeg courthouse.