Robert Jeffrey Morden pleaded not guilty to criminal negligence last year in death of Headingley inmate

WARNING: This story contains disturbing details.

CBC Indigenous: A Manitoba corrections officer charged in the 2021 death of an inmate at the Headingley Correctional Centre has been acquitted of all charges.

Robert Jeffrey Morden pleaded not guilty to criminal negligence causing death and failing to provide the necessaries of life, following a February 2021 altercation that began as a prolonged standoff between inmate William Walter Ahmo and corrections officers in a common room of the provincial jail, west of Winnipeg.

The incident ended with Ahmo, 45, being sent to hospital in medical distress. He was taken off life support a week later and died. Manitoba’s chief medical examiner ruled his death a homicide.

Manitoba provincial court Judge Tony Cellitti delivered his 44-page decision in a Winnipeg courtroom on Friday — almost a year after lawyers made their closing arguments in the case.

During the September 2023 judge-alone trial, court was shown footage of Ahmo’s final moments of consciousness — including a nearly 21-minute-long video that revealed details of what happened.

• ‘Red flags should have gone up,’ Crown argues at trial for corrections officer charged in inmate’s death
• Headingley inmate said ‘I can’t breathe’ more than 20 times while restrained by guards, video shows

That footage begins after Ahmo created a disturbance in the jail, and other inmates were then locked in their cells.

In another video shown in court, Ahmo — an Anishinaabe man from Sagkeeng First Nation in southeastern Manitoba — is heard telling a crisis negotiator he was upset over hearing a racist joke earlier that day. 

An agitated Ahmo can be seen in video shown in court pacing in a common area, at one point ripping a water tank off the wall. Corrections officers shot chemical projectiles at Ahmo as he stood on the second floor of a correctional centre unit, holding a mop handle. Ahmo swung the broom at about a dozen officers, who then took him down to the floor.

‘I can’t breathe’

The video presented in court showed Ahmo saying “I can’t breathe” more than 20 times while under restraint in the prone position.

The video showed the officers moving Ahmo to a second location, referred to as the “horseshoe,” while he was still face down on the floor.

During the trial, Crown attorney Jason A. Nicol told court at that point the threat Ahmo posed was “substantially mitigated.”

• Mother files lawsuit alleging racist treatment led to beating death of Anishinaabe son at Headingley jail
• Manitoba grand chief calls for public inquiry into in-custody death of William Ahmo

Nicol said Ahmo could be heard saying that he was choking and that he was being killed, and repeatedly begging officers for help.

Once Ahmo lost consciousness, he was dragged by officers and placed in a restraint chair, which Nicol said does not follow use of force policy and was not justified. The video showed an officer pulling Ahmo’s limp head back. 

Nicol argued it’s clear that urgent medical intervention was needed, and Morden, the captain of Headingley’s emergency response unit, failed to provide it. 

Defence lawyer Richard Wolson disagreed, saying Ahmo had been aggressive throughout the confrontation and at one point told officers he didn’t intend to go peacefully. Wolson said the restraint chair was only requested when Ahmo was fighting, resisting and kicking. 

WARNING: The video and descriptions below contain graphic content.

Video footage shows Ahmo’s last minutes in Headingley jail

An excerpt from 21-minute-long video showing the Feb. 7, 2021, incident: 12 months ago, Duration 7:23

Warning: This video contains disturbing content. Video footage shows Headingley jail inmate William Ahmo being swarmed and restrained by corrections officers on Feb. 7, 2021. Ahmo was taken to hospital in medical distress and died a week later. His death was ruled a homicide.

Click on the following link to view the video:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/robert-morden-william-ahmo-trial-decision-1.7314644

He added the team put him in the chair to move him to another location where they were going to “decontaminate” him from having been pepper-sprayed, and said Morden was in contact with the command centre.

If any of the senior officials believed the use of the chair shouldn’t have occurred, “You can bet they would have said something,” said Wolson.

He also argued Morden and his team believed Ahmo said he was unable to breathe because he had been pepper-sprayed, which he said corrections officers are taught in training is a common reaction.

The defence lawyer noted court heard pepper spray was a contributing factor in Ahmo’s death.

A forensic pathologist who testified during the trial said Ahmo died from a brain injury caused by a lack of oxygen and blood to the brain. The pathologist said that was likely triggered by how Ahmo was restrained, and that the inmate’s heart stopped during the confrontation with officers.

‘I had hoped for justice’: mother

Ahmo’s mother, Darlene, expressed her “deep disappointment and sorrow” following the verdict.

“My heart is broken. I had hoped for justice for my son but instead we are left with more questions and no accountability for his death. William’s life mattered, and to see no one held responsible is devastating,” she said in a written statement, emailed to media by the law firm representing the family.

She said she is committed to continuing to fight for reforms in the correctional system to prevent similar tragedies.

Manitoba’s Fatality Inquiries Act requires an inquest if it’s believed a person died as a result of use of force by police.

Darlene Ahmo’s statement said she will participate fully in the inquest, which the family hopes will be called soon.

“This isn’t just about my son anymore — it’s about every inmate who is mistreated and forgotten. No one should lose their life because of neglect or a lack of basic humanity.”