The Unseen Battles in Prison: Imo Lewis and the Fight for Freedom
In 2006, while serving a life sentence in Millhaven Prison, I was accused of starting a riot that had taken place. As a result, I lost my job as the range cleaner. During questioning, they claimed to have footage of me starting the riot, which was simply not true. This went on for months, but I filed a grievance and eventually won. I was given back pay of five hundred dollars.
On September 1, 2005, as he lay on his couch with his newborn son on his chest, Imo Lewis’s wife snapped a picture of the moment. A few hours later, Imo was being interrogated for murder at a police station by Peel Police, while his home was being ransacked by police for evidence.
Somewhere in Saskatchewan, Dakota Ryder, along with his brother Kody Bear and a woman named Brittny Bear, decided to break into a couple's home to attack and kill them over a dispute between the two women had. The details of the incident were gruesome. Dakota, who was heavily intoxicated and only seventeen at the time, was sentenced to life in prison as a young offender.
In September 2020, while housed in Millhaven Prison, Dakota and Imo (both serving life sentences) were on the same range. At the tail end of a peaceful protest over COVID restrictions, Correctional Service of Canada’s Emergency Response Team (ERT) began shooting the men on the range with tear gas and rubber bullets, unprovoked. In the midst of the chaos, the two men were locked into a cell meant for a single person. Dakota, who had been seen running into Imo’s cell to take cover, had a shank (knife) in his back pocket. Dakota was locked in the cell at 11:45 a.m., and by 12:10 a.m., he was lying in a pool of blood, unconscious and dying.
Dakota was rushed to the hospital but was pronounced dead at 3 a.m. Imo was charged with first-degree murder. During the trial, which started on August 26th, we learned that Dakota, who was three times over the legal intoxication limit and armed, demanded that Imo give him more brew (homemade alcohol). Reluctantly, Imo gave Dakota his last bottle. After downing it, Dakota demanded more and even threatened Imo by putting the shank to his face. As his body temperature rose, Dakota decided to take off his green institutional jacket, which held his shank, and threw it under the single bunk bed. He then continued to ask for more brew from Imo, who had none to offer. Dakota threatened Imo again and went to retrieve his jacket with the shank in it. Fearing for his life, Imo engaged in an altercation that resulted in Dakota Ryder’s death. Imo stated that the altercation took no more than thirty seconds to a minute. A jury of five women and seven men took less than three hours to return a verdict of not guilty. Imo can finally apply for parole, which he was eligible for back in February of this year, but he had to waive it to face this charge. Imo’s family, including his two sons, aged 19 and 15, and his wife, have had quite an ordeal to endure over the past nineteen years.
There are many layers to how Corrections Service Canada’s (CSC) breakdown in protocols led to this tragic incident. It’s against CSC’s policy to lock two individuals into a single cell, but while on the stand, we heard of the term “double dooring,” which is when guards lock two prisoners into a single cell only to watch them fight. I don’t think that was the case in this instance, but when Imo’s cell door closed with him and Dakota in it, Imo could be heard calling to the control tower to open his cell door so Dakota could return to his cell. His request was ignored. Dakota had been transferred from another institution after putting another man in the hospital for weeks. In the short five months he was at Millhaven Institution, he had been implicated in four separate cases of assault, including one involving a correctional officer. Imo, on the other hand, aside from this incident, had a clean institutional record for nineteen years.
None of these gentlemen are angels by any stretch of the imagination, and Dakota obviously had a troubled childhood. Imo himself has had to deal with childhood trauma, which will be his story to tell. But just like the incident I was involved in, where I was falsely accused of starting a riot but later compensated once my name was cleared, I have no doubt that Imo Lewis will also be vindicated once he and his family file a civil suit.
After being charged with the murder of Dakota Ryder, Imo was transferred to an institution in Nova Scotia, where his family traveled twenty hours to see him. He was eventually transferred to Edmonton, Saskatchewan, and then back to Ontario to face the charge. These past nineteen years have been trying for Imo’s wife, but the past four years have been a nightmare for a family who had expected their patriarch back in the fold in February of this year. The potential outcome of Imo serving additional years had been stressful for the whole family, especially his wife, who has stood by him every step of the way. After the verdict on September 6, when asked what she’s looking forward to with Imo’s pending release once paroled, she said, “I am looking forward to him coming out and reconnecting with his family in person and being able to start pursuing his goals and dreams. I am looking forward to him starting his nonprofit initiative as a mentor.” She added, “Him living in peace away from the lockdowns and constant danger of prison and CSC, and also being truly free.” Imo’s wife also stated that she is “relieved of having to make the many travels to different institutions, including the ones out of the province, for over half her life."
Imo should have never been charged with the murder of Dakota Ryder. He was initially charged with first-degree murder, which was then reduced to second-degree by preliminary hearing. Finally, at an inconvenient time, the crown/prosecutor, Wallace, suddenly conceded that a conviction on second-degree murder was no longer possible. She was now grasping at straws by asking the jury for a manslaughter conviction. Fortunately, Judge Adriana Doyle from Ottawa, along with lead defense lawyers Allison Craig and Darcy Leech, were able to overcome the crown’s futile efforts. They had no case to begin with; the county of Lennox & Addington, located in Napanee, had a budget to spend before the next fiscal year. They sure wasted it on this trial. They had Imo Lewis escorted to and from court by six or more large male members of Correctional Service of Canada’s Emergency Response Team (ERT). Imo was shackled and had his hands cuffed to a midriff restraint belt anytime he was moved in or out of court, along with the ERT officers. They also had an additional five or more OPP officers inside and stationed outside. Shame on everyone involved in this money grab by bringing these frivolous charges against Imo Lewis. I suggest CSC look to get in Imo’s good graces by simply expediting his release. I am certain his lawsuit will enact some changes to prison policies.
I, for one, am looking forward to seeing Imo Lewis share his lived experience with the children of the world. I hope for nothing but greatness from this man. You, Imo, again have the power to control the narrative of your life. Handle it with care, sir.
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