The public inquest into the deaths of Teresa Ann Scheunert and Mary Jonny has been postponed during these next two weeks to give lawyers for both the Yukon Hospital Corporation and the physicians more time to prepare and participate in all pre-inquest meetings.
This is not a balanced process for those of us who have lost our loved ones. We, the family of Teresa Ann Schuenert, have no legal representation or any assistance whatsoever so that we may be empowered to fully participate in the upcoming June inquest.
We are frustrated. Only after we asked were we told that pre-inquest meetings would start the week of March 31-April 3 with the new presiding coroner in attendance. He was invited to contact us March 11 and to date all has been silent to us. We have very pertinent questions for this process, for example:
* What evidence has already been accepted?
* What evidence can we bring forward?
* What expert witnesses have already been called to participate?
* May we call expert witnesses?
The imbalance in the whole process is not only on the legal front. Where other participants in the inquest are paid for their time to be there, families face the total costs of time from work, loss of income, childcare, travel and accommodation for an extended period of time being no less than two weeks this June.
Finding out what really happened and asking tough questions that need to be answered is our way of honouring and understanding the death of our loved one. It is the only way to prevent similar tragedies in the future. We are serving the public good. We in no way stand to gain financially in any way from this inquest, in fact it is the contrary.
Wanda Zimmerman
and Crystal Thomas
Ponoka, Alberta