A white Grande Prairie surgeon denies he targeted a Black surgical assistant in June 2016 by tying a noose and then taping it to the operating room door at Grande Prairie's Queen Elizabeth II Hospital. The surgeon denied he told colleague Dr. Scott Wiens — shortly after he taped the noose to the door — that it was aimed at Dr. Oduche Onwuanyi, a Nigerian-born Black surgical assistant. Wessels' lawyer, James Heelan, led evidence in which Wessels described a dysfunctional culture at the Grande Prairie hospital, particularly among the orthopedic surgeons. During the hearing, Wessels' lawyer repeatedly characterized the noose as a "lasso," despite the fact Wessels himself referred to it as a "small rope noose" in a 2016 apology letter and often called it a noose during Friday's hearing. Wessels' lawyer downplayed the incident as a "foolish joke for which Dr. Wessels is paying a significant price."

Source: CBC News October 16, 2020 21:24 UTC