A prison guard who videotaped the death of Ashley Smith of Moncton says he
was just following orders when he didn't intervene as the 19-year-old woman lay
dying in her cell.
Rudy Burnett was testifying at the inquest into Smith's
death in a cell in Kitchener, Ontario, five years ago.
He said there were
orders and a protocol to follow at the correctional centre. The inquest was also
told Smith trashed the sprinkler head in her segregation cell just hours after
arriving at the jail where she died a few months later.
Another guard, Blaine
Phibbs testified he first saw Smith tie a ligature around her neck within 12
hours of her arrival at the jail.