REGINA — The coroner’s inquest into the 2020 death of Kalin Dean Holonics wrapped up Wednesday after three days of proceedings. Ultimately, the jury determined that Holonics’ death was accidental due to a combined drug toxicity of fentanyl, acetylfentanyl and gabapentin. They all decided his time of death ranged between 12:30-5:30 a.m. on July 9, 2020.
An 8x12 image of Holonics, who hailed from Estevan, was positioned atop the table where his parents sat - a smiling young man whose life was cut short providing a subtle, but powerful presence.
Through the course of the inquest, a six-man jury heard testimony from an expert in forensic pathology, several inmates who knew Holonics, and many levels of staff who worked at the Regina Provincial Correctional Centre during the time he was incarcerated there. To some degree, testimony from all witnesses noted illicit drugs entering the facility as being a root cause of what led up to Holonics death. Several times, the slang term “bad action” drugs was used to indicate potentially a fatal batch had entered the jail — an offshoot of product available at the time in the larger community filtering into the cracks of RPCC walls.
Fellow inmates described Holonics as “a good guy” with a positive demeanour, fond of reading and actively composing a book about his experience with addiction.
Prior to jury deliberations on Dec. 7, Nicholas Brown, the lawyer representing the family, provided one last testimony from an audio statement obtained by an RCMP officer on Dec. 10, 2021, of an inmate who resided next to Holonics prior to his death. As with previous recordings throughout the inquest, Coroner Brent Gough, KC, placed a publication ban on the name of the person providing testimony.
The recording was a surprise to Candice Grant, representing Corrections, who commented on several points where the recording presented did not line up with many other facts presented previously. She compared timeline of events the audio witness presented with points during the CCTV footage obtained, finding several discrepancies. Grant advised the audio testimony should be contemplated with caution based on those discrepancies.
After deliberations, the jury came up with 11 recommendations, mostly for the RPCC facility, including one that all corrections facilities in the province enact a drone policy of a no-fly zone within 500 metres.
The others were:
- Update video camera technology for the highest quality possible.
- Have a paper checklist for correction officers to use during their checks noting item in order to spot trend or “red light” occurrences.
- Add one body scanner to be used for outside crews returning to the facility.
- Review the size of windows in the cell doors, and install larger windows with scratch-resistant coatings.
- Have a full time drug dog and handler on-site for random drug checks for the period of one year, then review the results.
- Terminology for working groups not be referred to as “gangs,” rather “crew” or “team” instead.
- Investigate the use of hard plastic heart rate monitors worn by inmates.
- That all reviews, investigations and inquests occur between 120 days to six months after an incident.
- Erect a fence that is at least 10 feet tall around the perimeter, 200 feet from the last barrier.
- All staff training for lifesaving measures including how to use Narcan be refreshed every two years, in person if possible.
Gough will now report these recommendations to the Chief Coroner now that the inquest has concluded. His closing remarks included his personal condolences to the family of Holonics.
“This has not been an easy process and I’m sure it has been difficult to hear some of the evidence,” he said. “Your contribution to the process has been important and it aids in the process of the coroner’s inquest.”
