SASKATOON — Brian Gallagher wants his daughter, Megan, to be remembered as a generous and kind-spirited person who was willing to give even the clothes she was wearing to someone who needed them more. Sadly, his daughter’s life was cut short sometime around Sept. 20 and 21, 2020.
“I want everyone to remember her, like the way I always remember her; always being a positive spirit to the people around her. She has been emotionally attached to people, even to those whom she has just met,” said Gallagher.
“She was joyful, humorous, and compassionate beyond belief. I’ve said it many times before, she was generous to the point that she would give up everything to help someone, especially if they needed assistance. A hug, anything at all, is probably one of her greatest gifts.”
He added that she will also remember her daughter as a good athlete, particularly in hockey and softball, where they spent time playing at the Joe Gallagher Field at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex, named after her grandfather.
For over two years, since Megan was last seen alive on the night of Sept. 20, 2020, their family waited for any news about her disappearance. On Sept. 29, 2022, human remains were found along the South Saskatchewan River near St. Louis, which were later confirmed to be Megan’s.
A week after that, nine people, believed to be involved in street gangs and repeat offenders, were charged. Over three years, each was given a sentence, with Roderick William Sutherland, the last to be tried, found guilty on Friday, Oct. 17.
The 12-member jury handed over a guilty verdict to Sutherland on charges of manslaughter, unlawful confinement, and offering an indignity to human remains in relation to Gallagher’s death. He was placed in custody after the judge set the sentencing for Dec. 19, 2025.
Hearing the guilty verdict was an emotional moment for Gallagher’s family and friends. Brian was joined by his wife Debbie Gallagher, Megan’s mother Ingrid MacColl and sister Lindsey Bishop. Despite feeling a heavy burden released, it was not the closure they had longed for.
“It was like something was released from my chest. The only closure we could ever get is if Megan walked through the door and gave us a hug, shared a meal, shared a Christmas. That’s never going to happen. That’s been taken from us,” said Gallagher.
He added that they still do not know how to move forward and head as a family without Megan by their side, which is new territory for them. They hope that one morning, they will wake up and think a little differently about the things that have happened over the past five years.
“Maybe I’ll wake up in the morning and I won’t have these horrible visions like I did last night. It’s been a dream. I don’t even know how to describe it,” said Gallagher, who now hopes that Megan’s case could be the start of a better justice system in the country.
“There are so many other families living the same reality. Indigenous women are at the very bottom of society’s hierarchy. Hopefully, we can start to turn that around and shape something more positive.”
He added that they will continue their advocacy work on helping other families and victims of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, using their pain to speak for others who can no longer speak for themselves.
“The first voice I think of today is that of Megan’s. Hers was the one thing that had been missing from all of this. But today, maybe, it was finally heard. To the families, friends and relatives of all of the victims, of all of the Indigenous missing people, they finally have a voice today,” he said.
“I hope it gets carried right across Turtle Island, across North and South America. There are so many cases like hers and so many instances within the Murdered and Missing Indigenous Peoples. We would like to see it as a turning point for some change.”
