A jury heard from its last witnesses and made a series of recommendations on Wednesday, during the third and final day of the inquest into the death of 31-year-old Nicole LaFontaine, who fell to her death from a window of a Regina YWCA building while staying there last July. LaFontaine was battling addiction and mental health issues at the time, the inquest has heard. According to multiple witnesses who have spoken since Monday, the woman was in psychosis leading up to her death.
A YWCA staff member testified that she was working the night LaFontaine died, and said LaFontaine's roommate alerted staff that the 31-year-old was trying to jump out of the fifth-floor window. On Wednesday, the jury heard from the YWCA Regina's leadership, including CEO Melissa Coomber-Bendtsen. She testified that the floor LaFontaine was staying on is only approved to provide a cot and food to women, not mental health and addictions support.
Inquest into death of Nicole LaFontaine hears from YWCA staff about moments before and after incident Inquest into the death of Nicole LaFontaine focuses on response from staff at Regina YWCA Coomber-Bendtsen said the facility needs mental health and nurse practitioners on-site, but the YWCA would need extra funding for that. She also that it would be beneficial to have addiction-recovery beds. "Nicole would have chosen an addiction bed.
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She was ready," Coomber-Bendtsen said. A photo shows Nicole LaFontaine at age four, before heading to preschool. (Submitte.