Ernie Crey cringed when he opened the envelope with his sister Dawn’s death certificate, and particularly when he saw that the B.C. Coroner had identified her place of death as Port Coquitlam.
Mr. Crey had hoped for more than a decade that his younger sister, who had disappeared from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, did not die on the Port Coquitlam farm of serial killer Robert Pickton. He had known since 2004 that her DNA had been found on the property, but, in the back of his mind, he often wondered if she might one day reappear.
The coroner’s office is only now releasing death certificates in Pickton-related cases where the bodies have not been discovered. For Mr. Crey, the certificate meant he could no longer hope. “I was taken aback by it. It was like proof positive that she is dead,” he said Thursday in an interview. “There was a finality about it. I did not expect to respond to the arrival of the death certificate like I did.”
The legal status of several women Mr. Pickton is believed to have killed has been in limbo for years. Mr. Pickton was convicted of second-degree murder of six women, but he has been accused of murdering an additional 26, including Dawn Crey. In many cases, investigators discovered the women’s DNA on the Pickton farm but their bodies were never found.
The lack of death certificates has created problems for families, such as difficulty gaining access to bank accounts and insurance. Cemeteries have asked for death certificates before memorial services were held. But without a court ruling on their deaths and only DNA samples to suggest a place of death, the coroner’s office has refused to issue certificates – until now.
Vancouver regional coroner Owen Court said he identified the place of death as Port Coquitlam because the women were presumed to have died on the Pickton farm. He did not elaborate. The deaths are private family matters and he is not at liberty to discuss them further, Mr. Court said in a statement released by his office.
Pat deVries, mother of Sarah DeVries, who went missing from the Downtown Eastside 13 years ago, said Thursday the family recently received Sarah’s death certificate.
The family for many years had no doubt that Sarah died on the Port Coquitlam property, she said in an interview. But she was pleased to have received an authoritative document. “It’s not anything I was gnashing my teeth waiting for, but I am glad to have it,” she said.
Mr. Crey said receiving the death certificate has opened old wounds. He was particularly troubled by the lack of charges against others who may have played a role in the women’s deaths. “He [Mr. Pickton] had people in his confidence that were basically coaching women to leave the Downtown Eastside and go to his property. And they did,” he said.
Mr. Crey said he would like to see the Liberal government under premier-designate Christy Clark consider reopening the outstanding murder cases. Even if Mr. Pickton is not charged with killing Dawn Crey, others who were involved in bringing his sister to Mr. Pickton’s Port Coquitlam farm should be brought to justice, he said.
“All the attention so far has been on Mr. Pickton … but now there should be discussions about others who may have been involved and played a role,” Mr. Crey said. “I don’t mean to sound bitter, but I think [the Christy Clark government] should be sensitive and respond to the families who want to see more done. … They need to take another look at it and try to decide if other charges should be pursued.”
The provincial government has appointed a Missing Women Commission to review the investigation into Vancouver’s missing and murdered women leading up to the arrest of Mr. Pickton. Commissioner Wally Oppal has asked the government for a broader mandate that would enable him to hear from families of the missing women as well as aboriginal and women’s groups.
