Members of Street Team SJ are mourning the sudden death of a homeless man whose amputations due to frostbite last winter sparked outrage and helped prompt changes. The body of Jamie Langille, 44, was discovered in a tent at an encampment near the Courtenay Bay Causeway and Crown Street on Tuesday around 8:45 p.m.
, the Saint John Police Force said Wednesday. "The major crime unit, in cooperation with the coroner's office, continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death; however, it is not believed to be criminal in nature," acting Staff Sgt. Matthew Weir said in a statement.
An autopsy will be conducted, he said, offering condolences to Langille's family and friends. Street Team members, who provide food and supplies to the homeless, learned of Langille's devastating death through social media posts, said director Johanne McCullough. They're taking the news "quite hard," she said.
Seemed to be doing well "We do get close to some of them when we've been serving them for so long. And Jamie has certainly been around our team members for quite a while." Langille had been living in a tent in a wooded area uptown for about four years.
In January, he lost part of his left leg and part of his right foot to frostbite after he fell asleep one night with wet feet. At the time, Catherine Driscoll, a volunteer with Street Team SJ, posted graphic photos of his blackened, cold-ravaged feet and the white-bandaged stumps left behind "We can't waste any more time. Nobody should.