Major crime investigators reviewing death of Victoria teen, which coroner reclassified as homicide

The Vancouver Island Integrated Major Crime Unit is investigating the death of Samantha Sims-Somerville. More than three years after the Victoria teen died, coroners ruled her death a homicide.

Vancouver Island’s major crime unit is investigating the case of a Victoria teenager whose death was initially ruled an accidental overdose, but has since been reclassified by coroners as a homicide.

At a committee of the whole meeting on Thursday, Victoria Police Chief Del Manak said his department has referred the case of Samantha Sims-Somerville to the Vancouver Island Integrated Major Crime Unit.

The 18-year-old died from a toxic dose of GHB, a date rape drug, after attending a party in Victoria in April 2021.

“We feel that if the coroners service has reclassified it to a homicide, that we should have — out of an abundance of caution — have somebody else independently outside of the Victoria Police Department investigators have a look at this,” Manak said in an interview with CTV News following Thursday’s meeting.

The B.C. Coroners Service initially determined Sims-Somerville’s death was an accidental overdose. After renewing its investigation, the service concluded in late October her death was a homicide. The coroner’s definition of homicide is death due to injury intentionally inflicted by the action of another person, and is “a neutral term that does not imply fault or blame.”

Manak said he plans to meet with the coroners service next week. He said VicPD is seeking clarity about the evidence that prompted the coroner to change its initial determination on Sims-Somerville’s cause of death.

“Is there anything that we may have missed or may have overlooked? We certainly don't feel that that's the case,” Manak said.

“But because it's been reclassified from the coroners service as a homicide, we think that the right thing to do is have a fresh set of eyes, relook at this investigation and then just determine whether the Victoria Police investigators took the right steps.”

Sims-Somerville’s mother, Tracy Sims, said Victoria Police closed its investigation into her daughter’s death in September of 2022. No one was ever charged.

Sims filed a Police Act complaint against VicPD for its “absolutely inadequate” investigation. The Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner is investigating her complaint.

Sims expects the OPCC’s findings to be released in the new year.

-With files from CTV News Vancouver Island’s Scott Cunningham