TORONTO - The delayed inquest into the death of a young woman in an Ontario prison may not resume for at least two weeks.
Ashley Smith, 19, often tied ligatures around her neck in custody and choked herself to death on Oct. 19, 2007.
Since the inquest began May 16, and for months prior, lawyers for advocates and the Smith family have spent much time pressing coroner Dr. Bonita Porter to make the inquest more open and accessible to the public.
The inquest has been adjourned indefinitely since Wednesday for Porter to consider a couple of motions, including a request from the Correctional Service of Canada for guards' faces to be blurred in videos.
A spokeswoman in the office of the chief coroner said in email today that June 13 is being tentatively considered as a date for the inquest to resume.
Porter is also considering a court ruling that ordered her to take another approach when deciding whether to include in the inquest videos from a Quebec prison that Smith's family says depict graphic mistreatment.
The inquest is expected to last six to nine months, but will take a summer break in July and August.
