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| Man killed by police identified |
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| Dugald Christie, 1940-2006 |
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The man shot and killed by a Williams Lake RCMP officer on August 13th has been identified as 43 year-old Donald Dwayne Lewis. Mr. Lewis is at least the 23rd person to die at the hands of BC police since May of 2002.
His family now faces an interminable delay as they wait for answers. The police themselves will investigate the incident. Many months later, they will provide their investigative report to Crown Counsel and to the Coroner. Many months after that, perhaps years, the Coroner will get around to holding the mandatory inquest. This process is inhumane and unfair to the victims' families. Coroners' delays were the subject of an editorial in The Province newspaper yesterday.
Cameron Ward will be speaking on this subject on CKNW, AM980 on Sunday, August 20, 2006 at 3:00 p.m.
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The other 22 deaths:
The following list of people who have died while in police detention or custody in B.C. since May of 2002 has been gleaned from media accounts. Many of the media accounts are based on information provided by police. This list does not include deaths occurring in jail from natural causes or suicide. It may not be exhaustive, as some incidents may not have been reported in the press or may otherwise have escaped our attention.
1. Benny Matson; May 2002, Vancouver
Matson knocked over a motorcycle, was pursued and kicked in the head by one or more VPD officers. A coroners inquest was held and an OPCC complaint was dismissed.
2. John MacKay; July 2002, Vancouver
Mackay died in the Vancouver Jail of “blunt trauma injuries suffered from falling over and striking his head.”
3. Christopher Eklund; August 2002, Vancouver
Eklund “died accidentally after a struggle with Vancouver police” when his “heart stopped as a result of neck compression”.
4. Tom Stevenson; December 2002, Vancouver
Stevenson was sitting in a stolen vehicle the VPD had disabled. Two VPD members approached the vehicle. After Stevenson ignored their commands to get out, the police fired six shots into the vehicle, killing Stevenson instantly. At the coroner’s inquest, police stated that Stevenson had reached for a plastic gun. The plastic gun was photographed lying outside the vehicle near the left rear wheel. An inquest determined the death to be a homicide and the jury’s recommendations included a recommendation that the police not be allowed to investigate themselves. A civil suit is pending.
5. Lorraine Moon; February 2003, Cormorant Island
Moon was “brandishing a knife” when she was shot by an RCMP officer.
6. Terrence Hanna; April 2003, Burnaby
Hanna died after the RCMP shot him with a Taser, a “non-lethal” weapon that emits 50,000 volts of electricity and is designed to inflict excruciating pain and temporarily incapacitate the subject. (188 North Americans have died after being Tasered by police. No independent safety testing of Tasers has yet been done in Canada).
7. Keyvan Tabesh; July 2003, Port Moody
Tabesh was shot by plainsclothes Port Moody police after he had smashed a car window with a machete. An inquest was held.
8. Clay Willey; July 2003, Prince George
Willey died after Prince George RCMP repeatedly shot him with a Taser.
9. Joe Pagnotta; February 2004, Victoria
Pagnotta was shot by Victoria police after he “came at officers with a knife”.
10. Roman Andreichikov; May 2004, Vancouver
Andreichikov, unarmed, died after he was Tasered by VPD.
11. Robert Bagnell; June 2004 Vancouver
Bagnell, unarmed, was lying on his bathroom floor in medical distress when several VPD officers repeatedly shot him with a Taser. An inquest is set for September 5, 2006.
more>>
Vancouver lawyer Dugald Christie, 65, was killed near Sault Ste. Marie while cycling across Canada to raise awareness the plight of the poor in attempting to obtain access to justice.
Dugald was a courageous, selfless and tireless advocate for the marginalized and disadvantaged. He accepted clients and took on cases that few other lawyers would, and fought passionately for improved access to justice for the poor. His tragic and untimely passing leaves a tremendous void.
As cruel, capricious and unfair as the law can seem, it is no match for life sometimes.
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A personal note:
Some years ago, I was engaged in a lengthy, lonely and costly campaign to try to persuade the Law Society of British Columbia that it was wrong for it to compel BC lawyers to join the Canadian Bar Association as a prerequisite to being afforded the right to practise law in this province. Dugald Christie went out of his way to offer me his personal support. I found most lawyers were indifferent to my efforts, and many were downright hostile, so Dugald's gesture was truly welcome. His encouragement meant much to me then, and means even more to me now.
Dugald Christie, God bless him, shall continue to inspire me in everything I attempt to achieve in the practice of law.
