N.L. government paid over $1M in legal bills for 10 exonerated HMP guards

The government of Newfoundland and Labrador spent over $1 million on the legal bills of 10 prison guards in an inmate death case dismissed in 2021.

The guards at Her Majesty's Penitentiary were charged in connection with the 2019 death of 33-year-old Jonathan Henoche.Three of the 10 guards faced manslaughter charges.

But the case of Henoche'scustody death a two-year criminal ordeal never made it to trial.

Judge Pamela Goulding, after reviewing the Crown's evidence against the guards, said video evidence revealed the guards had remained orderly and calm while detaining Henoche after he exchanged punches with a guard.

Goulding came down harshly on Crown prosecutors, who submitted no expert testimony on the excessive use of force and "did not elucidate [their] theory" on why any of the guards should be tried.

She called their case "most unfortunate," adding she was left without any evidence of assault, negligence or any unlawful act.

Henoche's autopsy report, meanwhile, wasn't conclusive.

According to a document releasedthrough access to information legislation, those charges cost the Department of Justice $1,023,621 in legal fees for the 10 accused.

The guards, now exonerated, later sued the province for mental pain, anguish and suffering resulting from the charges, as well asloss of enjoyment of life, loss of reputation, and a "sense of betrayal from having been subjected to malicious prosecution, negligent investigation ...and defamation."

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