By Anna Mehler Paperny and Dori Seeman – Investigative Journalism Bureau
Heather Lafleur sought to convince a trio of strangers she shouldn’t be injected with powerful drugs against her will.
mental health
Canada prisons fail to follow solitary confinement rules, report finds
Canadian provinces seek to treat more drug users against their will
By Anna Mehler Paperny and Nia Williams – Reuters
With illicit drug use, homelessness and untreated mental illness reaching a crisis in parts of Canada, the governments of at least three provinces want to treat more people against their will, even as some health experts warn involuntary care for drug use can be ineffective and harmful.
Attawapiskat’s suicide emergency is no surprise to anyone paying attention
April 11, 2016 – Anna Mehler Paperny, Patrick Cain and Katie Scott, Global News
Perhaps the most gutting thing about Attawapiskat’s suicide emergency is how unsurprising it is to those closest to the crisis.
Psychiatrist’s explosive testimony could derail Via terror trial
July 21, 2015 – Anna Mehler Paperny, Global News
A man accused of conspiring to commit an act of terror may be found unfit to stand trial after being found guilty, calling into question whether he was capable of committing the offense in the first place.
Inmates with mental illness subject to ‘cruel and unusual punishment,’ suit alleges
July 17, 2015 – Anna Mehler Paperny, Global News
A Toronto law firm has launched a class action suit against the federal government over the treatment of prison inmates with mental illness.
‘Psychiatrists in blue’: How do you train cops to be better social workers?
July 7, 2015 – Anna Mehler Paperny, Global News
It was just another 911 call to an apartment building where a tenant was causing a ruckus.
Taser Files: What happens to you when you’re Tasered?
July 7, 2015 – Anna Mehler Paperny, Global News
The problem with assessing the effects of Tasers on the human body is that the kind of human bodies most likely to be tasered — people who are sick, stressed, drunk, high on drugs, experiencing a psychotic episode or emotional crisis or strenuous exertion — are both most likely to experience exacerbated health complications and impossible to ethically test for them.
Taser Files: What we found in 594 pages of police incident reports
July 7, 2015 – Anna Mehler Paperny, Global News
The call came in just before 8 p.m. – a woman was threatening to kill herself. Police found her with a butcher knife pressed up against her neck.
‘Without the Taser he’d be alive today’: How should we police Taser use?
July 7, 2015 – Anna Mehler Paperny, Global News
Strictly speaking, the Taser that shot seven seconds of paralyzing electricity into Aron Firman’s chest, darts piercing bare skin for 14 minutes before they were removed, before CPR was performed, was only a “contributing factor” in the 27-year-old’s death.
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