For Roxanne Brown, the news that the main witness to her son’s murder will face obstruction charges comes as a huge relief.
After years of feeling “failed” by the system, Brown told CTV Montreal that she can finally stop checking in with investigators about the progress made with the female witness.
“I just want to know that the system is aware of things, you know? That things don’t slip through, because as a community member, that’s where the problem is,” Brown said in a phone call Friday.
Brown’s family has been vocal about their issues with authorities since day one of their tragedy—when 17-year-old Darius Brown was found dead in an apartment building at the corner of Westminster and Westhaven in Cote-St-Luc back in November 2016.
Police initially told media that Brown died after a fall that occurred while he was attempting to rob a 19-year-old woman.
At the time, these reports were based on a witness account, but that same primary witness is now facing three charges of obstruction, and one charge of being an accessory after the fact.
Montreal police allege that the witness gave false statements about how the events played out that night.
The announcement of charges comes six months into Brown’s dogged pursuit of answers about the night her son died.
“To know that someone could be part of a crime that’s so horrible – and there’s no consequence that the person has to perceive or feel in any kind of way—I think that’s the part that bothers me,” she said.
An autopsy revealed that Brown’s cause of death was a stab wound to the back.
However, for the boy’s family, the issue lay in the “injustice” done by police, by initially suggesting that Brown was at fault during the altercation.
According to his obituary, Brown -- a high school student-- lived in NDG and was an active member at local community centres, namely Westhaven, where both his parents were involved.
Thousands of mourners attended the memorial service, the cost of which was covered by donations raised on a GoFundMe page in Brown's name.
Video recorded by a security camera in the lobby of the apartment building moments before the incident depicts Brown interacting with another young man – a suspect who now faces second-degree murder charges.
The accused, whose name cannot be revealed as he was a minor at the time of the incident, was denied bail last winter.
At the time, the defence argued against trying the suspect as an adult, though he turned 18 shortly after his arrest.
Preliminary hearings – wherein a judge will decide if there is enough evidence to take to trial—will begin at the end of November.
Despite the fact that her son’s case is moving ahead in increments, Brown says that the family is still in the early stages of a painful process.
“That feeling of being discouraged and a little disappointed still lingers,” Brown explained. “It would take a lot more for me to feel that everything is going to be better now when it comes to the system.”
