Stockwell Day dismisses demands for public hearings into man's death at YVR
Doug Ward, With Files From Kelly Sinoski, Vancouver Sun; with files from CanWest News Service
Published: Friday, November 16, 2007
A graphic video of Robert Dziekanski's death after he was Tasered by police sparked outrage Thursday, and politicians called for a review of the way police use Tasers.
The video of the Polish immigrant writhing on the floor moments before his death prompted Public Security Minister Stockwell Day to tell Parliament he has asked for an examination of the use of Tasers.
"This is a tragic and grievous incident. We want to find out answers that can prevent these things from happening in the future," Day said in the House of Commons.
It's unclear what form a review would take, since Day told the Commons last month the RCMP and the Canadian Police Association were already reviewing the use of Tasers.
Canada's justice ministers, meeting in Winnipeg this week, reserved judgment on the safety of Tasers. However, the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, which patrols parts of Newfoundland and Labrador, on Thursday suspended the use of Tasers.
Day rejected demands for public hearings into Dziekanski's death, saying that while many Canadians might find the video disturbing, several investigations were already underway.
The four RCMP officers involved in the incident were still on active duty Thursday following an internal review, said RCMP Cpl. Greg Gillis, an instructor in the use of Tasers.
Gillis said the review did not cause any concern that the officers acted punitively or outside their regular duties. If it had, he said, the officers would likely have been put on desk duty or suspended.
The video, taken by Victoria resident Paul Pritchard, was watched on evening news broadcasts throughout Canada, later on American news shows, and widely on the Internet.
The federal Liberals said public hearings are needed as part of an investigation into new national guidelines on the use of Tasers.
"A private report to the minister is unacceptable," said Liberal public safety critic Ujjal Dosanjh. "Any review or analysis must be thorough, public, prescriptive and conducted by an independent body."
NDP MP Penny Priddy said the "screams of a dying man echo throughout the country" and that Canadians want answers before more lives were lost.
"Is it standard operating procedure for the RCMP to use Tasers when there is no obvious physical threat?" she asked Day in Parliament.
Gillis said no further internal investigations will be conducted until other investigations, including one by the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP, are completed.
B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell told reporters the video shows police need to re-examine how they use Tasers.
"I've seen the tape," Campbell said. "I haven't had a chance to see the whole tape. Obviously it's very disturbing to everyone and I think the important thing for us to recognize, first of all, it's a human tragedy, it's going to affect everyone that's involved in it."
B.C. Solicitor-General John Les said that "you can't watch the video without being moved emotionally."
Les said a coroner's inquest should be underway next year. He also said he was confident there is enough civilian oversight in the RCMP's investigation of the incident to ensure that it will be transparent and independent.
B.C. Attorney-General Wally Oppal said he found the video disturbing, but urged people to wait until all the evidence is available.
"Our system is based on fairness and I would want to hear what the police side of the incident is before any of us would rush to judgment," said Oppal.
NDP public safety critic Mike Farnworth called for a special prosecutor under the Crown Counsel Act. Farnworth said a special prosecutor could provide the independence and transparency required in any review of the tragic incident.
The NDP MLA said people around the world will be watching to see how the B.C. government responds to Dziekanski's death.
The video left many questions unanswered, said Farnworth, including why the four policemen who approached Dziekanski didn't physically restrain him rather than using a Taser.
Piotr Ogrodzinski, Poland's ambassador to Canada, said he was very upset by the video and that Warsaw wants to know more about a RCMP probe into the incident.
"The reaction of the RCMP officers was unsuitable to the situation. What I've seen was that Mr. Dziekanski [was] a person who was agitated, frustrated, I think terrified, but not aggressive. He was not making a gesture that he intended to fight anybody," Ogrodzinski told Reuters.
"He didn't know what to to do. In fact, he was in search [of] help. That is why it is a really very sad and deeply moving film to watch."
Dale Carr, an RCMP spokesman in Vancouver, said the officers involved in the case would testify under oath at a coroner's inquest.
But the B.C. Civil Liberties Association noted that coroner's inquests do not assess blame. "There needs to be a criminal investigation," said executive director Murray Mollard.
Simon Fraser University criminologist Neil Boyd said the video does not show what police had been told before they arrived on the scene at the airport.
"The public tends to react to criminal-justice events in a kind of tidal wave of emotion, and often very bad, unusual cases end up creating criminal justice policy. That worries me," Boyd said.
DIFFERENT VIEWS OF THE SAME INCIDENT
The release on Wednesday of a video showing Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski being Tasered by the RCMP has allowed the public to see for itself what took place on Oct. 14 in the moments before Dziekanski's death. It also raised a number of questions. What the video shows appears to conflict at times with the RCMP's version of events, immediately following the incident. And policing experts have raised concerns that the opening moments of the second part of the three-part video, showing the fatal incident, suggest police could have handled the situation better.
0:00
WHAT THE VIDEO SHOWS: The key sequence of events begins when the video shows what appears to be four men wearing RCMP uniforms arriving in the public arrivals area and moving in Dziekanski's direction.
WHAT POLICE SAID: In its original news release on the incident, the RCMP said three police officers were involved in the incident.
19 Seconds
WHAT THE VIDEO SHOWS: Police are told by a bystander that Dziekanski doesn't speak English. As he approaches Dziekanski, one of the officers asks him, "How are you doing, sir?"
WHAT CONCERNS HAVE BEEN RAISED: Paul Kennedy, chair of the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP, has said his review of the incident will look into whether or not the RCMP followed its own policies on dealing with people who can't communicate in English, and whether those policies are adequate.
37 Seconds
WHAT THE VIDEO SHOWS: Several people are seen observing the incident from the airport's public lounge. But Dziekanski and the officers appear to be entirely alone in the secure arrivals area, which is separated from everyone else by safety glass.
WHAT POLICE SAID: The RCMP has said the officers did not use pepper spray on Dziekanski because of the large number of people at the airport.
50 Seconds
WHAT THE VIDEO SHOWS: Dziekanski is shown surrounded by the officers moments before he is Tasered. There is no sign that Dziekanski rushed towards the officers, who are a few metres away, but he does appear to be holding something in his hand.
WHAT POLICE SAID: The RCMP said Dziekanski attempted to grab something off a desk when he was shot using the Taser.
WHAT CONCERNS HAVE BEEN RAISED: Michael Lyman, a policing expert at Columbia College in Missouri, said the four officers on the scene should have been able to physically restrain Dziekanski without resorting to the Taser.
"I don't even think batons or mace would have been necessary, given that there were four officers on the scene," said Lyman. The RCMP's incident-management model classifies the Taser as an "intermediate device". That means it can be used against suspects who are resisting arrest or are combative, but should not be used against those who are simply not cooperating with an officer's request. The RCMP says the Taser may also be appropriate in cases where someone is in a state of "excited delirium" and needs urgent medical attention. A report into the use of Tasers commissioned by B.C.'s Police Complaint Commissioner in 2005 recommended that Tasers should be used only against a subject who is actively resisting arrest or posing a risk to others, not someone who is simply "passively resisting."
68 Seconds
WHAT THE VIDEO SHOWS: After being Tasered by police, Dziekanski falls to the grown and flails around. Three of the officers hold him face down on the ground and handcuff him as Dziekanski struggles against them. After being handcuffed, Dziekanski gasps and moans before going silent.
WHAT CONCERNS HAVE BEEN RAISED: Donald Van Blaricom, former chief of the Bellevue, Wash. police, said police should have made Dziekanski sit up as soon as possible after he was Tasered to help him breathe normally. He said Dziekanski's resistance after being handcuffed may have been due to his inability to catch his breath. The 2005 report concluded many Taser-related deaths are likely due to the way suspects are restrained after being Tasered, rather than the Taser itself. The report recommended that, following a Taser shock, a subject should be restrained in a way that allows him to breathe easily, preferably face up.
WHO IS LOOKING INTO WHAT ASPECT OF THE DEATH
Four investigations into the death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski are underway and a fifth has already been completed.
- Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT): Investigating the cause of death. This could lead to a criminal investigation and is expected to be completed before the end of this year.
- RCMP internal review: A review has been done to determine if the four officers involved in the incident acted punitively or outside their regular duties, Cpl. Greg Gillis said. No such finding was made and no further internal investigations will be conducted until judicial investigations are completed.
- The Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP: The commission works with the RCMP to determine the adequacy of the police response, as well as the adequacy of RCMP's investigation into the incident, commission spokesman Nelson Kalil said. The commission likely won't get fully involved in the review until an inquest is held, and an investigation into potential criminal charges has been completed.
- Coroner's inquest: Inquests are held when a person dies in police custody. The coroner's office aims to hold an inquest within 12 months of an incident, which means this one should be initiated before October 2008, coroner Jeff Dolan said. The inquest is to determine the classification of death -- accident, homicide or suicide -- and give recommendations to prevent similar situations from occurring. The length of the inquest depends on the number of witnesses to be called.
The coroner's office has already completed autopsy and toxicology reports.
- The Vancouver International Airport Authority: Review of procedures and protocols around security, translation services, responses to medical emergencies in the terminals, and methods for communicating with Canada Border Services Agency.
No timeline for completion has been set.
Kelly Sinoski, Vancouver Sun
ONLINE EXTRA
For today's developments, visit:
www.vancouversun.com
TASER POLL
Most respondents disapprove of RCMP action
Reasonableness of RCMP actions during incident
Q: Regarding the Oct. 14 incident where Robert Dziekanski died shortly after being Tasered by RCMP officers at Vancouver International airport. Over all, do you think the actions of police during this incident were reasonable or not reasonable?
Approval of RCMP actions since incident
Q: Do you generallly approve or disapprove of the actions by the RCMP since the incident took place?
Seen video of incident
Q: As you may know, the video of this incident has been released to the media. Have you personally seen any of the video of this incident?
© The Vancouver Sun 2007