People attend a vigil in memory of Nicous D'Andre Spring in Montreal, Friday, Dec. 30, 2022. Spring died in hospital after reportedly suffering injuries on Saturday, Dec. 24, at the Bordeaux provincial jail. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

MONTREAL — A former corrections worker has been charged in the death of a 21-year-old man who died after an altercation with guards while he was unlawfully detained at a Montreal jail in 2022.

Quebec provincial police say 54-year-old Sébastien Bossé was arrested Thursday and charged with manslaughter in the death of Nicous D'André Spring. Bossé was released on a promise to appear in court, with his next court date on Aug. 22.

Quebec’s Public Security Department has described Spring’s detention as “illegal” because he had been ordered released the day before the altercation.

On Friday, the province confirmed that Bossé had been the head of a unit at the jail at the time of Spring's death, and was removed from his duties in December 2022.

"In order not to interfere with the proper conduct of the judicial process and out of respect for the families concerned, the Public Security Department will make no further comments on the elements that may be examined by the court," the department said in an email.

Spring's sister Sarafina Dennie issued a statement through her lawyer saying Bossé's arrest is a "long-overdue step toward justice."

"For almost three years, we’ve cried, waited, fought, and demanded the truth. This arrest doesn’t erase the pain, but it shows that Nicous’s life mattered and still matters. He was more than an inmate. He was a son, a brother, an uncle a human being with dreams, and a heart full of love."

Authorities have released little information on the events that led to Spring's death. In an interview in January 2023, the head of the union representing guards at the Montreal jail said they put a spit hood over Spring's face because the way he was speaking resulted in saliva being directed toward guards.

Mathieu Lavoie of the Syndicat des agents de la paix en services correctionnels du Québec also said guards used pepper spray on Spring because he allegedly did not calm down.

The death prompted Spring's family to call for an inquiry into systemic racism in the provincial detention system.

Quebec's chief coroner ordered a public investigation in early 2023, but those hearings have not taken place yet. The province's Public Security Department has also said it would conduct an administrative investigation into what happened.

The Red Coalition, an anti-racism lobbying organization that assisted Spring's family in the weeks following the death, said in a news release Friday that the man's fate was a result of "systemic negligence, poor oversight, and a lack of humanity within a system that too often views Black lives as disposable."

For her part, Spring's sister said the family "is not done."

"We want to see full justice, not just an arrest, but a conviction, and accountability for every person who played a role in what happened," she said in the statement.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 11, 2025.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2025