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.

…..

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.

12. Majencio Camaso; July 2004, Saanich
Camaso was shot by Victoria police after he came at them with a pipe and crowbar. An inquest was held and an OPCC complaint filed.

13. Dean Andrusyk; September 2004, Vancouver
Andrusyk was shot by VPD officers when he “pulled a knife”.

14. Dwight Caron; November 2004, New Westminster
Caron died of trauma in the New Westminster jail.

15. Gerald Chenery; December 2004, Vancouver
Chenery was shot 12 times by two rookie VPD officers. David Eby represented the family at the inquest.

16. Kevin St. Arnaud; December 2004, Vanderhoof
St. Arnaud, unarmed, was shot three times by an RCMP officer while both were in a field. An inquest is to take place in 2007.

17. Unidentified man, 49, February 6, 2005, Vancouver
This Calgary man died after a “brief struggle” with the VPD.

18. Gurmeet Sandhu; June 2005, Surrey
Sandhu died after Surrey RCMP repeatedly shot him with a Taser. No inquest date has been set.

19. Stephen Hanaghan; June 2005, Kamloops. No inquest date has been set.

20. Kyle Tait; August 2005, New Westminster
Tait was one of five teenagers in a stolen car stopped by New Westminster police. Cst. Sweet fired three shots into the vehicle, one of which killed Tait. No inquest date has been set.

21. Ian Bush; October 2005, Houston
Bush, unarmed was shot in the head by an RCMP officer. The family’s lawyer is Howard Rubin. No inquest date has been set.

22. Ryan Snopek; January 1, 2006, Cranbrook
Snopek died from bleeding on the brain caused by a “crack in the skull”. No inquest date has been set.

Dugald Christie

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.

……

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.

Written Statement from Chief Constable Jamie H. Graham

2006-07-26

The following written statement was issued by Chief Constable Jamie H. Graham this morning:

Questions were raised in the media today about an exchange between myself and City Manager Judy Rogers.

Only because it has been raised in the media I feel it is important to let the public know what happened.

On June 30th, I placed one of my old shooting targets from the range on Ms. Rogers desk with a note saying “A bad day at the range is better than the best day at work.”

This saying is similar to the “I’d rather be fishing” bumper sticker.

When I later learned that this gesture had caused some concern, I apologized to Ms. Rogers verbally and in writing.

The original gesture was made with only the most positive of intentions and I regret any confusion it may have caused.

Jamie H. Graham

Chief Constable

……

Go figure…

A Wisconsin man has become the 200th person to die after being “Tasered” by law enforcement officials.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has reported that Nickolos Cyrus, 29, was shot with a Taser gun on Sunday “when he failed to comply with officers’ commands”. After two 50,000 volt shocks, he stopped breathing and was subsequently pronounced dead. Cyrus’ death is the third in as many days, and the 33rd this year alone. 69 North Americans died in 2005 after being shot by Tasers.

The list of 2006 Taser-related deaths:

January 3, 2006: Roberto Gonzalez, 34, Waukegan, Illinois

January 13, 2006: Daryl Dwayne Kelley, 29, Houston, Texas

January 22, 2006: Nick Ryan Hanson, 24, Ashland, Oregon

January 25, 2006: Murray Bush, Metairie, Louisiana

January 27, 2006: Jorge Luis Trujillo, San Jose, California

January 28, 2006: Karl W. Marshall, 32, Kansas City, Missouri

January 31, 2006: Jaime Coronel, Castroville, California

February 13, 2006: Darval Smith, New Orleans, Louisiana

February 19, 2006: Gary Bartley, 36, Mandeville, Louisiana

February 24, 2006: Samuel Hair, 48, Fort Pierce, Florida

March 4, 2006: Melvin Anthony Jordan, 27, Norman, Oklahoma

March 8, 2006: Robert R. Hamilton, 42, St. Augustine, Florida

March 18, 2006: Otto Zehm, 35, Spokane, Washington

March 20, 2006: Timothy Grant, 46, Portland, Oregon

March 24, 2006: Theodore Rosenberry, 35, Hagerstown, Maryland

April 5, 2006: Thomas Clint Tipton, 34, Clearwater, Florida

April 15, 2006: Nick Mamino Jr., 41, St. Louis, Missouri

April 16, 2006: Billy Ray Cook, 39, Dublin, North Carolina

April 16, 2006: Juan Manuel Nunez III, 27, Lubbock, Texas

April 21, 2006: Alvin Itula, 35, Salt Lake City, Utah

April 24, 2006: Jose Romero, 23, Dallas, Texas

April 24, 2006: Emily Marie Delafield, 56, Green Cove Springs, Florida

May 1, 2006: Jeremy Davis, 24, Bellmead, Texas

May 7, 2006: Kenneth Cleveland, 63, Ashtabula, Ohio

May 25, 2006: Brian Davis, 43, Los Angeles, California

June 4, 2006: Felipe Herrera, 48, Las Vegas, Nevada

June 13, 2006: Jerry Preyer, 43, Pensacola, Florida

June 18, 2006: Jason Troy Dockery, 31, Coolville, Tennessee

June 21, 2006: Kenneth Eagleton, 43, Crosby, Texas

June 21, 2006: Joseph Stockdale, 26, Indianapolis, Indiana

July 7, 2006: Michael Deon Babers, 26, Shreveport, Louisiana

July 8, 2006: Christopher Tull, 36, Cincinnati, Ohio

July 9, 2006: Nickolos Cyrus, 29, Mukwonago, Wisconsin

What do Kevin St. Arnaud, Kyle Tait and Ian Bush have in common? All three unfortunate youths were unarmed when they were shot and killed by British Columbia police officers. Each fatality was investigated by the police themselves. No charges have been laid. Although a coroner’s inquest is mandatory whenever someone in B.C. dies while detained by or in the custody of a peace officer, no inquest has yet been held in any of these cases.

This is unacceptable.

……………..

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.

12. Majencio Camaso; July 2004, Saanich
Camaso was shot by Victoria police after he came at them with a pipe and crowbar. An inquest was held and an OPCC complaint filed.

13. Dean Andrusyk; September 2004, Vancouver
Andrusyk was shot by VPD officers when he “pulled a knife”.

14. Dwight Caron; November 2004, Vancouver
Caron died of trauma in the New Westminster jail.

15. Gerald Chenery; December 2004, Vancouver
Chenery was shot 12 times by two rookie VPD officers. David Eby represented the family at the inquest.

16. Kevin St. Arnaud; December 2004, Vanderhoof
St. Arnaud, unarmed, was shot three times by an RCMP officer while both were in a field.

17. Unidentified man, 49, February 6, 2005, Vancouver
This Calgary man died after a “brief struggle” with the VPD.

18. Gurmeet Sandhu; June 2005, Surrey
Sandhu died after Surrey RCMP repeatedly shot him with a Taser.

19. Stephen Hanaghan; June 2005, Kamloops

20. Kyle Tait; August 2005, New Westminster
Tait was one of five teenagers in a stolen car stopped by New Westminster police. Cst. Sweet fired three shots into the vehicle, one of which killed Tait.

21. Ian Bush; October 2005, Houston
Bush, unarmed was shot in the head by an RCMP officer. The family’s lawyer is Howard Rubin.

22. Ryan Snopek; January 1, 2006, Cranbrook
Snopek died from bleeding on the brain caused by a “crack in the skull”.