Cherish Oppenheim
MERRITT, BRITISH COLUMBIA
The case of a beloved 16-year-old girl who didn't return home one night—and the many questionable decisions made by authorities that could have inadvertently saved her life.
The intention of this episode is to highlight how cases involving missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls are often treated differently at every stage of the criminal justice process, as per Reclaiming Power and Place, the final report of the National Inquiry into #MMIWG.
Additional content warning: this episode is about the murder and possible sexual assault of an underage girl.
This month, Canadian True Crime has donated to Justice for Girls Outreach Society
Credits:
Indigenous script consultant: Danielle Paradis
Script Consultant: Carol Weinberg
Audio Editor, Voice of Disclaimer: Erik Krosby
Senior Producer: Lindsay Eldridge
Researcher, Writer, Narrator, Sound Design: Kristi Lee
Theme songs: We Talk of Dreams
All other music from Epidemic Sound and Blue Dot Sessions
Sources
Collection of articles from The Province sourced via newspapers.com
Collection of articles from The Vancouver Sun sourced via newspapers.com
Collection of articles from The Times Colonist sourced via newspapers.com
MMIWG Inquiry Truth-Gathering Session - Transcript from Cherish Oppenheim’s family session
Justice System’s Response: Violence against Aboriginal Girls [PDF], and Dezwaan case chronology by Kelly A. MacDonald on behalf of Justice for Girls, September 2005
Online news sources:
https://bc.ctvnews.ca/exclusive-mother-of-teen-victim-wasn-t-told-murderer-had-escaped-1.3374418
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/rcmp-actions-questioned-in-merritt-murder-1.390403
https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/convicted-killer-missing-from-mission-institution
https://www.saobserver.net/opinion/a-legacy-of-suffering-3651289
https://www.merrittherald.com/escaped-murderer-recaptured/
https://www.merrittherald.com/man-admits-to-strangling-teen/ (via Wayback Machine)
https://www.saobserver.net/opinion/a-legacy-of-suffering-3651289
Murder by Text by David Kushner for Vanity Fair, October 27, 2011
Other online sources:
Indigenous History
https://www.coldwaterband.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nlaka%27pamux
https://www.nvcjss.com/about-us/our-community-in-the-nicola-valley/
https://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/totem_poles/
MMIWG National Inquiry
Reclaiming Power and Place: The Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
Inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women issues final report with sweeping calls for change | CBC News
https://www.cbc.ca/newsinteractives/features/cfj-report-cards
Justice for Girls
http://www.justiceforgirls.org/
https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/8784
Sex trafficking
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-safety-canada/campaigns/human-trafficking/sex-trafficking.htm
Criminal code bail conditions
https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-46/section-515.html
