Doctors testify at coroner’s inquest into police shooting of Quebec teen | Canada News Media
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Doctors testify at coroner’s inquest into police shooting of Quebec teen

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SHERBROOKE, Que. — A neuropsychiatrist who saw a Quebec teen just months before he was killed by police in July 2018 told a coroner’s inquiry Thursday he’d diagnosed him as suffering from symptoms related to traumatic brain injury.

The inquest is looking into the death of Riley Fairholm, a 17-year-old who was killed by Quebec provincial police after they encountered him in distress and waving an air pistol early on July 25, 2018.

The entire interaction in the parking lot of an abandoned restaurant in Lac-Brome, Que., lasted just over a minute, with a veteran police officer repeatedly telling to Fairholm to drop his weapon before one of the six officers who responded fired, striking the teen in the head.

Police have told the inquest he was yelling incoherently and pacing while waving the weapon but did not appear to point it at any officer in particular.

Fairholm had left a suicide note and texted his mother in the minutes before he was shot. He had called 911 on himself and provided police with an accurate description of what he was wearing and that he had a weapon. The responding officers, however, were unaware that the person in front of them was the one who had called 911 and that the weapon he held was an air pistol.

The shooting was investigated by Quebec’s independent police watchdog, after which the Crown decided not to lay charges.

Fairholm’s family have said the police were too quick to shoot and they have accused the police watchdog, the Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes, of lacking transparency.

Several doctors testified Thursday before coroner Géhane Kamel, including neuropsychiatrist Dr. Sylvain Boucher, who assessed Fairholm in February 2018 and recommended treatment for post-concussion syndrome. He identified at least two incidents of traumatic brain injury in Fairholm’s youth, including a skiing accident at age 12.

Boucher told the inquiry Fairholm suffered from symptoms consistent with post-concussion syndrome, including light and noise sensitivity and slowed thought processes. He said that could explain the teen’s problems with focus at school and cyclical depression. “Head trauma can bring symptoms of anxiety, inattention, depression, behavioural issues,” Boucher said.

But he said he did not have reason to believe that Fairholm was suicidal. If there were concerns, he would have reported them, Boucher said.

Boucher had recommended that Fairholm undergo neurofeedback therapy to enhance brain function, a popular therapy used by professional athletes. But Fairholm suffered a rugby-related concussion in May 2018 and the therapy was never administered.

After Boucher’s diagnosis, Fairholm’s family doctor prescribed an antidepressant, Wellbutrin, in April 2018. The doctor, Normand Chagnon, said he never noted outward signs of depression in Fairholm. “Each time I saw Riley, I never saw him depressed,” Chagnon said, adding he was supposed to see Fairholm two months later regarding the medication but never did.

Chagnon became aware of Fairholm’s issues in 2015 when his mother complained of mood swings, depression and problems at school. She tried to have Fairholm seen by a psychiatrist but it was determined he would be assessed by a psychologist, Anna Beth Doyle.

Doyle met with Fairholm a few times in late 2015, but the patient discontinued the visits. When she last saw Fairholm in November 2015, he was doing better, sleeping regularly and had cut out team sports to focus on school. So Doyle said she didn’t push further about continuing the therapy.

“He was a lovely young man, very cooperative, but not of many words,” Doyle said, adding she worked with him on different ways of coping and managing stress when he fell into moderate depressive moments.

“Looking back, perhaps I could have worked more closely with the mother … but he had just turned 15, we were bound by the right of an adolescent to make their own medical decisions,” Doyle said. “It was not our practice to put pressure on the parents.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 16, 2022.

— By Sidhartha Banerjee in Montreal.

 

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Christian McCaffrey is placed on injured reserve for the 49ers and will miss at least 4 more games

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SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers placed All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey on injured reserve because of his lingering calf and Achilles tendon injuries.

The move made Saturday means McCaffrey will miss at least four more games after already sitting out the season opener. He is eligible to return for a Thursday night game in Seattle on Oct. 10.

McCaffrey got hurt early in training camp and missed four weeks of practice before returning to the field on a limited basis last week. He was a late scratch for the opener on Monday night against the Jets and now is sidelined again after experiencing pain following practice on Thursday.

McCaffrey led the NFL last season with 2,023 yards from scrimmage and was tied for the league lead with 21 touchdowns, winning AP Offensive Player of the Year.

The Niners made up for McCaffrey’s absence thanks to a strong performance from backup Jordan Mason, who had 28 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown in San Francisco’s 32-19 victory over the New York Jets. Mason is set to start again Sunday at Minnesota.

After missing 23 games because of injuries in his final two full seasons with Carolina, McCaffrey had been healthy the past two seasons.

He missed only one game combined in 2022-23 — a meaningless Week 18 game last season for San Francisco when he had a sore calf. His 798 combined touches from scrimmage in the regular season and playoffs were the third most for any player in a two-year span in the past 10 years.

Now San Francisco will likely rely heavily on Mason, a former undrafted free agent out of Georgia Tech who had 83 carries his first two seasons. He had at least 10 touches just twice before the season opener, when his 28 carries were the most by a 49ers player in a regular-season game since Frank Gore had 31 against Seattle on Oct. 30, 2011.

The Niners also have fourth-round rookie Isaac Guerendo and Patrick Taylor Jr. on the active roster. Guerendo played three offensive snaps with no touches in the opener. Taylor had 65 carries for Green Bay from 2021-23.

San Francisco also elevated safety Tracy Walker III from the practice squad for Sunday’s game against Minnesota.

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Canada’s Newman, Arop secure third-place finishes at Diamond League track event

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BRUSSELS – Canada walked away with some hardware at the Diamond League track and field competition Saturday.

Alysha Newman finished third in women’s pole vault, while Marco Arop did the same in the men’s 800-metre race.

Newman won a bronze medal in her event at the recent Paris Olympics. Arop grabbed silver at the same distance in France last month.

Australia’s Nina Kennedy, who captured gold at the Summer Games, again finished atop the podium. Sandi Morris of the United States was second.

Newman set a national record when she secured Canada’s first-ever pole vault medal with a bronze at the Olympics with a height of 4.85 metres. The 30-year-old from London, Ont., cleared 4.80 metres in her second attempt Saturday, but was unable conquer 4.88 metres on three attempts.

Arop, a 25-year-old from Edmonton, finished the men’s 800 metres with a time of one minute 43.25 seconds. Olympic gold medallist Emmanuel Wanyonyi of Kenya was first with a time of 1:42.70.

Djamel Sedjati, edged out by Arop for silver in Paris last month, was second 1:42.87

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2024.

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Bologna prepares for Champions League debut with draw at Como while Juventus held

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MILAN (AP) — Bologna’s preparations for its Champions League debut are not going well though it managed to spoil Como’s first Serie A home match in 21 years on Saturday.

Bologna came from two goals down to salvage a 2-2 draw to gather three points from its opening four matches.

Bologna hosts Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday. Its only other appearance in Europe’s top competition was in 1964 in the preliminary round of the old European Cup.

AC Milan is also winless as it prepares for a Tuesday Champions League match against Liverpool. The Rossoneri hosted promoted Venezia later. Juventus drew at Empoli 0-0.

Como made a great start in the fifth minute when Patrick Cutrone attempted to roll the ball across the six-yard box but it took a huge deflection off Bologna defender Nicolò Casale for an own goal.

Bologna thought it was gifted a way back into the match on the stroke of halftime when referee Marco Piccinini signalled for a penalty following an Alberto Moreno handball, but he revoked his decision and instead gave a free kick because the handball was just outside the area.

Bologna improved after the break but found itself further behind when Cutrone raced onto a through ball and cut inside past a defender and fired into the far bottom corner.

Tommaso Pobega hit the post for Bologna, which finally pulled one back in the 76th through substitute Santiago Castro.

Another substitute helped the visitors snatch a point when Samuel Iling-Junior curled a fine strike into the top left corner in stoppage time.

Unbeaten sides

Juventus, and more surprisingly Empoli, are among six unbeaten sides.

Empoli held Monza and Bologna to draws either side of a shock 2-1 win at Roma. Juventus’ perfect start to the season was ruined by Roma in a goalless draw before the international break.

On Saturday, there were few clearcut chances in Empoli although home goalkeeper Devis Vásquez made spectacular saves to fingertip out a Federico Gatti header and deny Dusan Vlahovic in a one on one with the Juventus forward.

Empoli had a good opportunity in the 73rd minute following an Alberto Grassi one-two with Pietro Pellegri but the finish was straight at Mattia Perin.

The host could have won it right at the death but Gatti flew in with a great sliding block to keep out Emanuel Gyasi’s close-range effort.

Juventus hosts PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Tuesday.

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