Lawrence Joseph, Sask. First Nations leader and justice advocate, dead at 79

WATCH: Lawrence Joseph, a former FSIN chief died on Sunday. He'll be remembered for his outspoken advocacy for justice and policing reform.

A First Nations leader who was a vocal advocate for reforms to justice and policing in Saskatchewan died on Sunday from complications related to a chronic lung condition.

Lawrence Joseph, a member of Big River First Nation, served as chief and vice-chief of what was then called the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN). During his tenure, he was a key voice calling for the inquiry into Saskatoon police over the infamous starlight tours who spent the ensuing decades advocating for the creation of a civilian police oversight body.

His daughter Trina told CTV News on Monday that Joseph died in his home on Sunday night after spending Easter with his family.

Trina said for her dad, family, community and his Anglican faith were three of the great touchstones of his life.

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“He was always there, and he always made sure that we kept our faith strong,” she said.

“We knew the importance of family and community and showing up, and not just, if you’re in politics, not just during election time — you show up for people.”

On Sunday, despite his illness, Trina says Joseph still made sure the family got together for Easter supper.

Joseph spent around 30 years in the public service before entering political life, including serving in the Canadian Forces, as a corrections worker at the Saskatchewan Penitentiary in Prince Albert, and working for the Department of Indian Affairs.

That’s where Kinistin Saulteaux Nation Chief Felix Thomas says he met Joseph.

“We became friends almost right away,” Thomas told CTV News.

Joseph was also a talented musician and entertainer. When Thomas got married in 1995, Joseph performed at the wedding.

“He never forgot people; after 40 years or whatever. He was just a personable guy that was friends with so many people,” said Thomas.

Joseph was elected to city council in Prince Albert in 1991, and again in 1995. In 1997, he made a successful bid for election as vice-chief in the FSIN, where he became an influential advocate for justice.

In a tribute to Joseph in 2022, former AFN and FSIN Chief Perry Bellegarde honoured Joseph’s strong determination to “break down the blue veil” around police misconduct.

Bellegarde says Joseph helped create the special investigations unit within the FSIN — an office dedicated to investigating civilian complaints against police.

“We needed some independence, we needed some arms length overview from the police policing themselves,” Bellegarde said in the 2022 video.

Thomas told CTV News that Joseph “made a lot of people realize that things just weren’t right in Canada.”

“And he not only set out to try and fix it but also try and comfort the people that were affected by it.”

Joseph spent much of his political career advocating for greater cooperation between police and First Nations people, to move away from punitive methods and toward an approach he called “holistic integration.”

“The western concept of justice is punishment, and only punishment. They call it ‘corrections,’ but I have worked in a correctional institution, the federal penitentiary in Saskatchewan, Prince Albert — all that is, is a federal university for more crime,” Joseph said in a speech at a justice and policing conference in Saskatoon in 2005.

In the speech, he said to police officers, “law enforcement should be at the bottom of your responsibilities.” Joseph envisioned police in the future acting more as “referral agents, social agents, counsellors.”

Thanks to his efforts, FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron says his organization has good working relationships with many police services today.

“Sure there’s some challenges; there’s ... room for improvement, but the communication and respect is there, you know, and it’s all thanks to folks like Doctor Lawrence Joseph,” Cameron told CTV News in an interview Monday.

Joseph died at his home in Prince Albert on Sunday. He was 79.

A funeral is scheduled for Thursday, April 24 at St. Alban’s Anglican Cathedral on Bishop McLean Crescent in Prince Albert. Services for Joseph will also be held Tuesday and Wednesday evening, Trina says.

-With files from Hallee Mandryk