Police still tight-lipped about death of young Mi'kmaw woman

Three weeks after the death of a young Mi'kmaw woman from We'koqma'q in Cape Breton, RCMP are still saying very little about their investigation or the circumstances of her death.

Cassidy Bernard, 22, was found dead in her home on Oct. 24. Her two infant girls were also found in the home and are being cared for by family members.

Police have not named Bernard as the deceased in the case, though she has been identified by community members. Police also won't say whether they are treating her death as a homicide, saying only the death is suspicious and is not believed to be a random act.

RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jennifer Clarke said Thursday police are waiting for aninvestigation by the medical examiner's officeto be completed before theyrelease more information.

"It's going to be a few more weeks," Clarke said.

No one has been charged in the case.

Loving mother

Bernard is being remembered by her family as a proud and loving mother who had many friends and a passion for the Mi'kmaw language.

In a piece written for the Cape Breton Post, Bernard's cousin, Annie Bernard-Daisley, said Bernard's twin six-month-old girls, Mya and Paisley, meant everything to her.

"They were her life," she wrote. "She fed, bathed, burped, and even nursed those precious babies like a professional. She took to motherhood so gracefully."

Bernard's obituary said she had an outgoing personality and a contagious laugh.

She was "a natural firecracker, small in stature but bigger than life," Bernard-Daisley wrote.

Bernard'sMi'kmaw culture was important to her, and she often sang to her girls in Mi'kmaw.

In her piece, Bernard-Daisleyurged anyone with information to come forward.