Latest news with #SiouxValleyDakotaNation
Winnipeg Free Press
9 hours ago
- General
- Winnipeg Free Press
Sioux Valley to spend $2M on portable classrooms
BRANDON — The Sioux Valley Dakota Nation will invest more than $2 million in portable classrooms as 90 students will be transferred from Sioux Valley High School in Brandon to the community in the fall. The move was prompted by serious concerns about the safety and suitability of the building, Sioux Valley Chief Vincent Tacan told the Brandon Sun. Tacan said council made the decision due to the building's aging infrastructure, potential asbestos contamination and an outdated boiler-based heating system in the basement. 'Would you put your child in a school that has asbestos?' he asked. 'We won't gamble with the health of our students or staff anymore. That building was supposed to be temporary, now we're nearly 10 years in.' Originally built in 1914, the former Fleming school was purchased by the community in partnership with the Brandon School Division as an interim measure while awaiting a new facility, Tacan said. 'It was originally designed for younger students, not high schoolers, and has fallen into further disrepair over the years.' Sioux Valley had hoped to be on track for a new, permanent school, but a recent letter from Indigenous Services Canada dashed those expectations. In the letter addressed to chief and council and shared with the Sun, Kandice Léonard, ISC's regional director general for Manitoba, stated: 'Indigenous Services Canada has not committed funding for the design and construction of a new school … Sioux Valley Dakota Nation remains included in the department's prioritization process for future investment consideration.' The news left the community disheartened. 'There was a perception in the community that a new school was coming. That was not true,' Tacan said. With no confirmed government funding, Sioux Valley is moving ahead with its own funds to secure the portable classrooms. 'We're funding this ourselves because we have to,' Tacan said. 'It's what our children deserve.' The new portable setup will return about 90 students to their home community, sparing them from about three-hour-long daily commutes to Brandon-area schools such as Crocus Plains, Vincent Massey and Neelin High. Weekday Mornings A quick glance at the news for the upcoming day. The portable classrooms will be delivered and installed ahead of the 2025–26 academic year, Tacan said. The community is also seeking support from other organizations and is open to partnerships to expand or enhance the temporary facilities, particularly to secure a gymnasium, he added. Tacan said Sioux Valley's struggle is not unique. 'There are 63 First Nations in Manitoba, and many of their schools are in rough shape,' he said. 'Now we have wildfires in the north, and the resources are being stretched even thinner.' — Brandon Sun
Winnipeg Free Press
17 hours ago
- General
- Winnipeg Free Press
Sioux Valley to spend $2M on portable classrooms
BRANDON — The Sioux Valley Dakota Nation will invest more than $2 million in portable classrooms as 90 students will be transferred from Sioux Valley High School in Brandon to the community in the fall. The move was prompted by serious concerns about the safety and suitability of the building, Sioux Valley Chief Vincent Tacan told the Brandon Sun. Tacan said council made the decision due to the building's aging infrastructure, potential asbestos contamination and an outdated boiler-based heating system in the basement. 'Would you put your child in a school that has asbestos?' he asked. 'We won't gamble with the health of our students or staff anymore. That building was supposed to be temporary, now we're nearly 10 years in.' Originally built in 1914, the former Fleming school was purchased by the community in partnership with the Brandon School Division as an interim measure while awaiting a new facility, Tacan said. 'It was originally designed for younger students, not high schoolers, and has fallen into further disrepair over the years.' Sioux Valley had hoped to be on track for a new, permanent school, but a recent letter from Indigenous Services Canada dashed those expectations. In the letter addressed to chief and council and shared with the Sun, Kandice Léonard, ISC's regional director general for Manitoba, stated: 'Indigenous Services Canada has not committed funding for the design and construction of a new school … Sioux Valley Dakota Nation remains included in the department's prioritization process for future investment consideration.' The news left the community disheartened. 'There was a perception in the community that a new school was coming. That was not true,' Tacan said. With no confirmed government funding, Sioux Valley is moving ahead with its own funds to secure the portable classrooms. 'We're funding this ourselves because we have to,' Tacan said. 'It's what our children deserve.' The new portable setup will return about 90 students to their home community, sparing them from about three-hour-long daily commutes to Brandon-area schools such as Crocus Plains, Vincent Massey and Neelin High. Tuesdays A weekly look at politics close to home and around the world. The portable classrooms will be delivered and installed ahead of the 2025–26 academic year, Tacan said. The community is also seeking support from other organizations and is open to partnerships to expand or enhance the temporary facilities, particularly to secure a gymnasium, he added. Tacan said Sioux Valley's struggle is not unique. 'There are 63 First Nations in Manitoba, and many of their schools are in rough shape,' he said. 'Now we have wildfires in the north, and the resources are being stretched even thinner.' — Brandon Sun
CBC
a day ago
- CBC
Father in Brandon's manslaughter trial found guilty in infant 2016 death
A Manitoba father has been found guilty of manslaughter in the death of his two-month-old daughter nearly a decade ago. Keifer Mecas, 34, was home alone watching his 11-week-old Haelin Taylor on Jan. 4. 2016, when she went into medical distress in Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, about 40 kilometres west of Brandon, Man. Haelin was rushed to hospital in critical condition but died nearly three weeks later on Jan. 23. Police deemed her death a homicide. Both parents were initially questioned by police. Charges were laid against Mecas seven years later in 2023, after multiple witnesses came forward in 2022 alleging he had confessed to harming Haelin. The judge-only trial began in April. On June 4, Court of King's Bench Justice Scott Abel found Mecas guilty of manslaughter. In his oral decision, he cited witness testimony placing Mecas alone with his daughter when the injuries occurred, as well as medical expert evidence outlining the nature of Haelin's injuries. "I've determined that the cause of death was the application of significant force in an acceleration-deceleration event," Abel told the court. "The injuries were not progressive but rather were caused at the same time ... when the accused was the only adult in the residence with Haelin. "I am satisfied that the accused caused the injuries to Haelin by the significant application of force." While the case relied on circumstantial evidence, the judge ruled it was reasonable to infer that Mecas inflicted the injuries that led to Haelin's death. He ruled the Crown had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Mecas's action – applying violent force – directly contributed to Haelin's death. The court found that Mecas had committed an unlawful act by assaulting the infant, using force that was well beyond what would be considered normal handling of a baby. The injuries were deemed dangerous and foreseeable, meeting the legal threshold for manslaughter, Abel said. At the trial, the defence suggested an alternative scenario in which Haelin had stopped breathing on her own, possibly due to choking. In a separate 2018 statement, Mecas told police Haelin had been vomiting and struggling to breathe, prompting him to perform CPR with light chest compressions, But, Justice Abel rejected that account stating it could not explain the severity of Haelin's injuries — including trauma to her brain, eyes and spinal cord. "Even if I were to accept that Haelin stopped breathing first and the accused shook Haelin to revive her that explanation still does not create a reasonable doubt regarding the cause of death," he said. Abel's decision repeatedly noted that medical experts testified that the injuries were consistent with significant acceleration and deceleration consistent with violent shaking. A doctor had also examined Haelin one month before the incident and confirmed she was a healthy baby at the time. "I accept their evidence that the cause of death was hypoxic-ischemic brain damage due to a traumatic brain injury," Abel said. "The trauma to Haelin's brain caused her heart to stop breathing resulting in a lack of oxygen and blood to her brain." Abel requested a Gladue Report — which explains an Indigenous person's history, their family's history and their community's history to the courts, in order to take the individual's unique circumstances and challenges into consideration — before Mecas is sentenced in July.
