Stream where teen’s body was found was searched day earlier: lawyer

In the video, McDonald said his team had searched the area where Miller’s body was later discovered — but their initial search turned up nothing.

He said if there was a body in the brook, his team would have found it.

“There was no way we could miss anything,” said McDonald, who Wagner said was unable to attend the news conference because of poor health. “There was nothing there.”

Wagner said McDonald wanted to reach out to the Miller family to ensure his story was on the record.

Miller’s family has raised questions over the years about the circumstances surrounding the teen’s death, saying they believe key information was withheld from the public.

Maureen Miller, the teen’s mother, said the fact searchers did not see the body backs up the family’s theory that his body was placed in the brook.

“We knew of other people that were down there looking for money or liquor or whatever, and there was no body, and nobody wants to do anything about it. They want to cover it up,” she said after the news conference.

“How did he get in the brook? He can’t do it on his own. Someone put him there.”

Lawyer Kate Boyle also read several statements from New Waterford residents who all said they were in the area the day after the bush party and did not see Miller’s body.

Two separate investigations, conducted by Nova Scotia’s chief medical examiner and the province’s independent police watchdog, concluded in 2015 that the 17-year-old was drunk when he fell into the stream while trying to run from police.

The reports echoed a series of earlier investigations, all of which concluded Miller’s death was an accident. The New Waterford police department was cleared of any wrongdoing.

On Monday, the Nova Scotia Serious Incident Response Team said at the time of their investigation, there was no information that any organized search of the area was conducted.

He said the unit was not informed about the new information collected by Wagner’s firm prior to the news conference. The team said it would examine the information to determine what, if any, impact it would have on prior conclusions.

But the unit said the new information, “does not challenge the conclusions reached that Clayton Miller did not suffer any injuries that caused his death.”

Wagner said Monday’s news conference was the first of three planned events designed to draw attention to the case.

He encouraged anyone with information to come forward, particularly those who may have been involved in the search for Clayton Miller’s body.

The Miller family is calling for an independent investigation to be headed by someone with no ties to the province.

Aly Thomson, The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

Stream where teen’s body was found was searched day earlier: lawyer

Our Community