Decision coming over officer's use of anti-riot gun in B.C. woman's death
VICTORIA - An adjudicator appointed by B.C.'s police watchdog is expected to release his decision on the discipline for an officer who fired an anti-riot weapon, killing a woman.
Former B.C. Supreme Court judge Wally Oppal ruled last month that Victoria police Sgt. Ron Kirkwood's use of a so-called ARWEN gun on Lisa Rauch was 'reckless and unnecessary.'
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CTV News
5 hours ago
- CTV News
7-day suspension for Victoria police officer who killed woman with anti-riot weapon
Lisa Rauch's parents, Audrey and Ron Rauch, say they encountered misinformation and significant delays during several police oversight investigations. (CTV News) VICTORIA — A Victoria police officer who was found to have made a serious error in judgment when he fired an anti-riot weapon into a smoke-filled room in 2019, hitting a woman in the head and killing her, has been handed a seven-day suspension without pay. But the mother of Lisa Rauch, the woman who died, said the years spent waiting to find out how Sgt. Ron Kirkwood would be disciplined have been a form of punishment too. 'The fact that we have waited 5 1/2 years to get here has been a punishment for us, as well for (Kirkwood) and his family,' said Audrey Rauch outside a hearing in Victoria on Thursday. She said she was satisfied that Kirkwood felt remorse. Adjudicator Wally Oppal, who was appointed by B.C.'s police watchdog, announced the punishment at the hearing, calling Kirkwood a good police officer who had a bad moment during a challenging call, which led to 'catastrophic circumstances.' Oppal ruled last month that the officer's use of the anti-riot weapon that killed 43-year-old Lisa Rauch was 'reckless and unnecessary.' He said the officer had an exemplary record, and had made a serious but not malicious error in judgment. He said he was satisfied that the misconduct 'in the context of other relevant factors does not justify dismissal, demotion or a lengthy suspension.' Lisa's mother and father Ron Rauch were among some 20 people in the audience when Oppal handed down his ruling. 'I have no experience with any kind of similar things happening, so I'm just trusting that Wally Oppal would know, what would be appropriate in this case, because he does this kind of work,' Audrey Rauch said. She called on Victoria Police Department to improve training and forgo the use of the anti-riot weapon known as an ARWEN gun, which fires plastic bullets. 'It was made for riot control, and not shoot somebody from 15 feet, even if it was 15 feet,' she said. She held back tears as she described her daughter as a person with a great sense of humour. 'She was funny,' she said. 'She loved to play the piano.' Oppal, who is a former B.C. Supreme Court judge, was appointed by the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner to review the evidence against the officer and determined earlier that Kirkwood committed misconduct when he used the weapon on Rauch, who was in a drug-induced psychosis. Oppal's ruling last month said police were called on Christmas Day 2019 to a Victoria apartment where Rauch had been using drugs and alcohol. It said when police entered the apartment, their view was obscured by smoke from a fire and they believed Rauch was standing, but she was sitting and was hit in the head by two plastic projectiles. Oppal said Thursday that Kirkwood's remorse was genuine and he was very unlikely to repeat his misconduct. 'However, I have to consider the whole of the circumstances, and here the incident was serious. It was a momentary one, and it was an error made in judgment. I have to consider that.' Oppal said the officer is on medical leave and has missed 'significant time' from work to address his post-traumatic stress stemming from the death. Among Oppal's recommendations are that the Victoria Police Department take steps to ensure front-line officers wear body cameras. Oppal acknowledged that the department expects the equipment in the coming years. 'I urge them to attach priority to the acquisition.' He said communication between the department and the victim's family lacked 'sensitivity,' included delays in providing information, along with 'multiple instances of misinformation.' Audrey Rauch agreed with the need for more accurate communication. 'We waited for 10 months to find out that they shot her in the back of the head, while she was sitting on a couch, with her back to them,' she said. 'That's wrong.' Oppal also criticized the communication between the department and Kirkwood, noting the officer was told of the woman's death by text. 'I accept fully the trauma that he experienced and I recognize what he had gone through. In my view, he could have been treated with much more sensitivity,' Oppal said. Victoria Police Chief Del Manak said he accepted the suspension of Kirkwood as well as Oppal's recommendations. Manak said he was glad Oppal recognized the circumstances of the incident. 'The adjudicator recognized that, when talking about the penalty, that a seven-day-penalty took into account the challenging and dynamic nature of this call and what the officer did not intend to happen,' Manak said. 'Of course, we all recognize that there are no winners in this.' He added that it is important to continue to recognize the family's stress and pain. 'The family have been here throughout, and I think it's important to recognize and make sure that our heartfelt condolences continue to go out to the family,' he said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 12, 2025. Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press
CBC
7 hours ago
- CBC
Victoria police officer to get 7-day suspension after death of woman
Victoria police Sgt. Ron Kirkwood will be suspended for seven days without pay for using an anti-riot weapon called an ARWEN to shoot plastic projectiles at Lisa Rauch. That decision came from retired judge Wally Oppal, who held a public hearing into the incident after it was ordered by the B.C. police complaint commissioner. Rauch, 43, died a few days after she was shot on Christmas Day 2019. It happened in a supportive housing complex in downtown Victoria, B.C., where Rauch had been visiting a friend. Rauch ended up in her friend's room, alone, in what witnesses described as a drug-induced psychosis. She had threatened those who entered with a knife, and had started a small fire. Police and firefighters breached the door of the room, and after water was sprayed at the fire, Kirkwood shot three rounds of the ARWEN into the smokey room — thinking he was aiming at her abdomen. Instead, he hit her in the head. Though previous investigations cleared Kirkwood of any wrongdoing, Oppal found he had committed abuse of authority by using unnecessary force, and acted recklessly. Still, he found it was an isolated incident for a police officer who is well-respected by his colleagues. Oppal called it "serious but not malicious, an error in judgment committed in the context of a dynamic and challenging call." The retired judge also pointed out that Kirkwood had shown remorse, and has been off work on medical leave, dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder. Inquiry finds Victoria police officer abused authority in fatal shooting 18 days ago Duration 1:57 A Victoria police officer has been found to have committed abuse of authority by using unnecessary force after fatally shooting a woman with plastic bullets on Christmas Day in 2019. The Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner concluded that the officer's actions were unjustified after the death of Lisa Rauch. Kathryn Marlow reports. Kirkwood also received support from supervisors and colleagues, including Victoria Police Department (VicPD) Chief Const. Del Manak who called him "a leader within VicPD [who's] had an exemplary track record and service record." Manak said he's confident Kirkwood will return to work and continue to lead and mentor younger officers. Kirkwood has received medals in the past, including for being on the scene of the Saanich bank shooting in 2022, where six of his colleagues were shot. Audrey Rauch, Lisa's mother, said she trusted Oppal's decision would serve as a deterrent, saying he had done an "admiral job" in the hearing. She said the five and half years it took to get to this stage were difficult, describing them as "a punishment for us as well as Kirkwood and his family." While she is disappointed Oppal's recommendations didn't include a police ban on ARWENs, she hopes the other recommendations bring change. 3 recommendations Oppal made three recommendations based on what he heard during the hearing: that Victoria police have their on-duty officers wear body cameras, that the police advocate to the province to create legislation surrounding notes taken and reports made by officers under investigation, and that they review how they communicate with both police and victims' families. Manak called the body-camera suggestion a "no brainer," saying he has tried to institute them in the past but couldn't get funding from Victoria and Esquimalt councils, which fund VicPD. He called it good timing that he is currently working on the budget for 2026, which will eventually be presented to councils. He said he and his leadership team would read Oppal's report and consider the other recommendations. The note-taking recommendation arises from the fact that Kirkwood took no notes following the incident, making it difficult to investigate — he was advised not to because he would be investigated by the Independent Investigations Office of British Columbia (IIOBC). Oppal said VicPD has since updated its policy so that notes are required, but in a way that still protects officers. He would like there to be a similar province-wide policy. When it comes to communication, Rauch's family reported several instances of being misinformed — or not informed at all — about what had happened and how seriously injured their daughter was. Kirkwood reported being informed of Rauch's death by text message. Oppal recommended Manak and the police board review how communication happened after Rauch's death and develop a policy leading to "reliable, timely, accurate, and sensitive communications" and support for the parties involved when civilians are seriously harmed by police and the IIOBC steps in.
CTV News
8 hours ago
- CTV News
Victoria officer gets 7-day suspension over death of woman hit by anti-riot rounds
Former B.C. judge Wally Oppal has issued a seven-day suspension without pay for a Victoria police officer who used an anti-riot weapon that killed a woman. Oppal listens to a government announcement during a news conference in the press theatre at legislature in Victoria, B.C., on Wednesday, July 19, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito A Victoria police officer who was found to have made a serious error in judgment when he fired an anti-riot weapon into a smoke-filled room in 2019, hitting a woman in the head and killing her, has been handed a seven-day suspension without pay. Adjudicator Wally Oppal, who was appointed by B.C.'s police watchdog, announced the punishment Thursday, calling Sgt. Ron Kirkwood a good police officer who had a bad moment during a challenging call, which led to 'catastrophic circumstances.' Oppal ruled last month that the officer's use of the anti-riot weapon that killed 43-year-old Lisa Rauch was 'reckless and unnecessary.' He said the officer had an exemplary record, and had made a serious but not malicious error in judgment. He said he was satisfied that the misconduct 'in the context of other relevant factors does not justify dismissal, demotion or a lengthy suspension.' Oppal, who is a former B.C. Supreme Court judge, was appointed by the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner to review the evidence against the officer and determined earlier that Kirkwood committed misconduct when he used the weapon on Rauch, who was in a drug-induced psychosis. Oppal's ruling last month said police were called on Christmas Day 2019 to a Victoria apartment where Rauch had been using drugs and alcohol. It said when police entered the apartment, their view was obscured by smoke from a fire and they believed Rauch was standing, but she was sitting and was hit in the head by two plastic projectiles. Oppal said Thursday that Kirkwood's remorse was genuine and he was very unlikely to repeat his misconduct. 'However, I have to consider the whole of the circumstances, and here the incident was serious. It was a momentary one, and it was an error made in judgment. I have to consider that.' Oppal said the officer is on medical leave and has missed 'significant time' from work to address his post-traumatic stress stemming from the death. Among his recommendations are that the Victoria Police Department take steps to ensure front-line officers wear body cameras. Oppal acknowledged that the department expects the equipment in the coming years. 'I urge them to attach priority to the acquisition.' He said communication between the department and the victim's family lacked 'sensitivity,' included delays in providing information, along with 'multiple instances of misinformation.' He also criticized the communication between the department and Kirkwood, noting the officer was told of the woman's death by text. 'I accept fully the trauma that he experienced and I recognize what he had gone through. In my view, he could have been treated with much more sensitivity,' Oppal said. This report by Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press, was first published June 12, 2025.
