Latest news with #IIO
Global News
24-05-2025
- Global News
Hearing finds VicPD officer committed misconduct in woman's plastic bullet death
A public hearing for a Victoria police officer in the death of a woman shot with plastic bullets on Christmas Day in 2019 determined he committed misconduct under the police act. The woman, Lisa Rauch, 43, was taken off life support and died in hospital a few days after the incident. Retired judge Wally Oppal delivered his ruling on Sgt. Ron Kirkwood on Friday, following 16 days of hearings. 'She was funny, she loved her family,' Audrey Rauch, Lisa's mother, told Global News. 'I would really hope that this has a deterrent effect on how people are dealt with – I really do.' 2:08 Hearing into Victoria police officer's actions in 2019 death of Lisa Rauch Police had been called to a housing facility after a fire broken out in a suite where Lisa was barricaded and had reportedly threatened someone with a knife. Story continues below advertisement With smoke coming from the window, police moved to enter the unit and fired three projectiles from an ARWEN, a so-called 'less-lethal launcher,' striking her in the head. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy She was knocked unconscious and never woke up. The hearing heard Lisa had been visiting a friend in the building, where the two drank alcohol and took crystal meth before the fire broke out. Kirkwood told the hearing he believed Lisa posed a danger to others and that he fired the projectiles into the unit, believing he was aiming at her torso. Oppal ruled he should not have fired at her while his vision was obscured by smoke, and that the situation did not justify the use of potentially lethal force. However, he said he accepted Kirkwood did not intend to kill her, and that his remorse was genuine. Oppal also ruled that allegations Kirkwood neglected his duty by failing to document his actions were unsubstantiated. 2:29 Vancouver police notify watchdog after man shot with rubber bullets during mistaken arrest 'This was a dynamic scene like no other. There was reference made to seconds. There were fire alarms that were going off in the building, there was reduced visibility,' Victoria Police Chief Del Manak said. Story continues below advertisement 'This was not an easy call – there were many, many variables at play — and nobody wanted the outcome that we ended up with.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "This was not an easy call - there were many, many variables at play — and nobody wanted the outcome that we ended up with." The Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner ordered the public hearing in 2023 following a request from Lisa's family, who said there were inconsistencies in information they received from police and from the Independent Investigations Office (IIO) — B.C.'s civilian police watchdog. An IIO investigation into the incident declined to open the door to charges in 2020, saying there were no reasonable grounds to believe an officer had committed an offence. The IIO report concluded Lisa was intoxicated and had threatened residents prior to the fire. It said while officers are trained to fire ARWEN rounds into a person's body, the officer's vision was obscured by smoke from the fire and he thought he had been aiming for her abdomen. A coroner's inquest into the death is still set to be scheduled in the coming months. Oppal is set to make recommendations to the Victoria Police Department and the Victoria Police Board at a later date.
CBC
21-05-2025
- CBC
RCMP officer faces possible charges after man shot in head in 2023
B.C.'s Independent Investigations Office (IIO) has concluded its investigation into a shooting on Vancouver Island two years ago and is asking the B.C. Prosecution Service to consider charges against the police officer involved. It happened in March 2023 and ended with one man in hospital with serious, life-threatening injuries, after he was shot in the head. In a statement, the IIO says its chief civilian director, Jessica Berglund, has concluded one of the responding officers may have "committed an offence in relation to the use of a firearm" and has forwarded the report to the B.C. Prosecution Service to make a final decision on whether charges will be pursued. The man who was shot is also suing two of the officers, alleging they used excessive force when he was in the midst of a "medical crisis." Incident sparked by skid steer chase in Duncan The IIO says the incident started the evening of March 28, 2023, when members of the North Cowichan/Duncan RCMP detachment responded to a report of a man operating a skid-steer loader in a residential area of Duncan. They found him in Evans Park, where the shooting took place. In his lawsuit, 32-year-old Davin Cochrane says he was driving the skid-steer loader through Duncan when police began pursuing him. The chase ended in Evans Park, where Cochrane says an RCMP officer shot him multiple times in the head and body, according to a notice of civil claim he filed in the B.C. Supreme Court. Cochrane's lawsuit alleges the as-yet unidentified officer who shot him was intoxicated at the time of the incident, lacked proper use-of-force training and had a history of problematic firearm use. It also claims a second supervisory officer who responded to the incident, who also hasn't been identified, knew or should have known that his colleague was intoxicated and that their "ability to behave professionally was impaired." The lawsuit claims negligence by the officers caused or contributed to the shooting, saying they confronted Cochrane in a way that made him fear for his life, failed to de-escalate the situation, and did not use other less-lethal means or warn Cochrane before shooting at him. "The use of excessive force by [officers] was unlawful battery arising from gross negligence, or malicious and/or willful misconduct," the claim reads. None of the allegations have been tested in court, and neither of the officers has filed a response to the lawsuit. Lawsuit pending Cochrane, a father of four who says he had turned his life around after a struggle with substance use and a long criminal record, claims he had been in a car accident earlier that day, and the police could see he was visibly "bandaged up." Cochrane was hospitalized in critical condition and says he sustained psychological, brain and physical injuries, and has a permanent cognitive disability as a result of the incident. His lawsuit also says he has been unable to work or care for himself independently since then. "The plaintiff's injuries have caused him pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life," the claim reads. B.C.'s minister of public safety and solicitor general and the attorney general of Canada are also named as defendants in the suit, which claims the RCMP, contracted by the province to police certain communities, were not properly trained and that the two governments are also liable for the alleged wrongdoing. They filed a joint response in May 2024, in which they deny Cochrane's claims and say he failed to obey police instructions, resisted arrest and obstructed RCMP officers during the incident. "The apprehension of the plaintiff as well as the means used were reasonable, lawful and executed in good faith," the response reads. The morning of the incident, Cochrane claims he was in a serious car accident that sent his head into the window of a vehicle and caused him to require hospitalization and knee surgery. He was described as "mumbling" by medical staff, and left the hospital "against medical advice" later that afternoon before he could undergo surgery, according to his claim. Mounties said they tried to get him to stop, but that the loader and police vehicles collided. Video circulated on social media shows a man driving a skid-steer erratically as police vehicles weave around him, seemingly trying to contain him, or, in some instances, ram him. Cochrane's lawsuit claims he operated the skid-steer at a very low speed, under 12 kilometres per hour, avoided all pedestrians and non-RCMP vehicles, and drove "in a manner which indicated he did not intend to cause harm to persons and/or property." His lawsuit says that at the time of the shooting, he "posed no imminent or potential risk of death or grievous bodily harm to any other person." Cochrane's claim says he is seeking compensation for pain and suffering, medical costs and current and future loss of earnings, as well as punitive damages from the defendants.
CTV News
21-05-2025
- CTV News
RCMP officer who shot Vancouver Island man twice in head faces possible gun charges
The Independent Investigations Office, B.C.'s police watchdog, has sent a file to the Crown for consideration of charges against an RCMP officer who shot a man twice in the head on Vancouver Island two years ago. It happened near Evans Park in Duncan on the evening of March 28, 2023. According to the IIO, bystanders called Mounties to report a man operating a skid-steer erratically on city streets just after 9 p.m. In a news release at the time, the IIO said the skid-steer collided with police vehicles in the park before police shot the man. Davin Cochrane, 31 at the time, sustained serious injuries and went to hospital in critical condition. His father spoke to CTV News on Tuesday and said an investigator with the IIO told him they would be recommending charges following a two-year investigation into what happened and whether the use of force was justified. 'She informed me that less than five per cent of the time, when these cases are presented to them, that there is wrongful doing on behalf of the RCMP,' Michael Cochrane said of his conversation with the investigator. 'But in this case, there is reasonable justification to move forward with charges against the RCMP.' The IIO announced the conclusion of its investigation in a news release Wednesday morning. It said Chief Civilian Director Jessica Berglund 'reviewed the evidence and determined that reasonable grounds exist to believe that one officer may have committed an offence in relation to the use of a firearm.' It did not say what possible charges are being considered. The file is now in the hands of the B.C. Prosecution Service which must decide if charges will be approved. One threshold in that decision will be whether or not the Crown believes there is a 'substantial likelihood of conviction,' and that prosecution would be required in the public interest. 'There is a sense of relief today, to know that it's being looked at in a real fashion,' Michael Cochrane said. He told CTV News his son still carries physical and emotional trauma from the shooting. 'He still struggles from lifelong injuries. He's had a lot of health issues related to this because of the substantial wounds that he suffered,' he said. According to his father, Davin Cochrane still has bullet fragments in his brain – and some fragments have migrated to organs elsewhere in his body. He said his son has had learn to walk again and continues to receive physical therapy on a daily basis at a facility in Vancouver. Davin Cochrane also receives regular counselling to help him with the trauma that he still experiences as a result of the shooting. 'His life will never be the same. And he's doing his best to get ahead of that and be grateful for every moment,' Michael Cochrane said. Davin Cochrane also has a civil lawsuit pending against two RCMP officers, the national force and B.C.'s Minister of Public Safety and the Solicitor General. The BC RCMP did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the duty status of the officers involved in the shooting.
CBC
13-05-2025
- CBC
Head of B.C. police watchdog wants agency to investigate sexual assault allegations
WARNING: This story contains details of sexual abuse and intimate partner violence. The director of B.C.'s police watchdog says her agency's mandate should be expanded to include investigating sexual assault allegations. B.C. is the only province with a civilian-led police oversight agency that doesn't investigate sexual assault allegations levelled against officers. "I believe [it] would lead to the public having a greater faith that these incidents are being fully and transparently investigated," Jessica Berglund, civilian director of the Independent Investigations Office (IIO), told CBC News. The IIO investigates any incident involving police that results in serious harm or death. If the agency has reasonable grounds to believe that an officer may have committed an offence, it will then refer the matter to the B.C. Prosecution Service for consideration of charges. If a municipal police officer is accused of sexual misconduct in B.C., they're disciplined not by an independent body, but by senior police officers from their own departments or from external police departments. Those decisions are then reviewed by an outside agency, the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner (OPCC), which can appoint a retired judge to reexamine the evidence if it disagrees with a police department's findings. Police watchdog agencies in every other province are mandated to investigate sexual assault, with the exception of Prince Edward Island, which doesn't have its own oversight agency yet and is working with the Nova Scotia and New Brunswick governments to finalize an agreement for one. 1 in 4 disciplined officers fired In March, the OPCC published a database of substantiated misconduct and disciplinary measures against officers employed by B.C.'s 12 municipal police departments. The database doesn't track RCMP officers. B.C. has about 2,600 municipal police officers, according to the latest provincial figures from 2023, which don't include the recently created Surrey Police Service. A review of all of the cases by CBC News found that in those involving sexual misconduct or gender-based violence, the officer involved was fired in one out of four cases. The offences range from sexual harassment to sexual and physical assault. Most of the victims were female police officers or officers' current and former partners. From 2009 to 2025, there were 40 instances of sexual misconduct or gender-based violence. In ten cases, officers were fired. In the other cases, officers received penalties including unpaid suspensions or training. Fellow police officers decided the penalties in over 80 per cent of the cases reviewed by CBC. Six of the officers resigned from the force before the misconduct process was complete. In each of those cases, the OPCC said their records show the officers were fired. The offences include a Vancouver police officer who was demoted from first-class constable to second-class constable after he "engaged in sexual activity" with a 17-year-old girl without asking for her age. Another Vancouver police officer was suspended for 12 days after he touched a female officer on her "buttock/crotch area without her consent" at a party, then later yelled at her "I haven't washed this hand since the party." An Abbotsford police officer who was issued a peace bond for assaulting his partner was suspended for one day and had to undergo counselling/treatment. 'Culture of impunity' Danielle McNabb, a Brock University assistant professor who researches Canadian public law and police sexual misconduct, argues the current system of police investigating police "erodes public trust." "It undermines the police's legitimacy when the public is sort of viewing what may appear to be sort of lenient or non-existent consequences," she said. Angela Marie MacDougall, the executive director of the Battered Women's Support Services Society, said she was surprised by some of the penalties that officers received. "It doesn't bode well for confidence in an agency that has a responsibility for being a measure of safety and protection for victims of sexualized violence," she said in an interview. "It's creating a culture of impunity around sexualized violence.... As an employer, I couldn't imagine not taking stronger action, knowing what it means for the culture of an organization." The Vancouver and Abbotsford police departments declined to comment on OPCC matters. The Vancouver department added that it has policies and expectations related to personal relationships and respectful conduct in the workplace. The OPCC told CBC the B.C. Police Act lays out the factors that decision makers should consider when choosing a penalty for officers, which include the seriousness of the conduct, the likelihood of future misconduct and the impact of the penalty on the officer and their family. It said the Police Act says approaches that seek to educate the officer should take precedence, unless it is unworkable or would bring the administration of police discipline into disrepute. Kate Puddister, an associate professor specializing in criminal justice policy at the University of Guelph, says research shows that having an external and independent investigation may facilitate more reports of sexual violence. "The fact that the process in British Columbia is internal, probably, has dissuaded several victims and complainants from coming forward," she said. "So it's possible that the rate of charges being laid or the rate of officers being dismissed wouldn't change, but perhaps the number of cases and people coming forward would be different." More resources would be needed Berglund says the IIO would need more staffing and training resources if its mandate were expanded. "Doing intimate partner, domestic violence investigations requires a very specialized skill set — including being very, very competent in trauma-informed interviewing," she said. A 2022 report into reforming B.C.'s Police Act, which governs the IIO, included a call for a civilian police oversight agency to oversee sexual offence complaints against police. C ritics have said that progress on implementing the act's recommendations have stalled in the three years since. Berglund says she is not currently involved with specific discussions on expanding the IIO's mandate to cover sexual assault. In a statement to CBC, the Ministry of Attorney General said it's deeply committed to ensuring justice for survivors of sexual assault. "Civilian police oversight is an integral component to upholding public confidence in policing and more broadly, the justice system. Calls to expand the IIO mandate in this way is one of a number of issues being considered in response to the recommendations [of the 2022 report]." It said expanding the mandate would require regulatory changes and extensive consultations with police.
Hamilton Spectator
13-05-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
Tla-o-qui-aht release Calls to Action for RCMP, BC Corrections and IIO
By Nora O'Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Tofino, B.C. – Tla-o-qui-aht released 20 Calls To Action for the RCMP, BC Corrections and the Independent Investigation Office (IIO) on May 9 after a Missing and Murdered Indigenous People and Children Walk that weaved through all three of the First Nation's communities, starting in the ancient village site of Opitsaht and ending in Esowista and Ty-Histanis. Justice Manager Curtis Joseph (Tayiisimčił) says they wanted to include the men and children in this year's Red Dress Walk as Tla-o-qui-aht people have lost male members at the hands of RCMP or while in corrections. On February 27, 2021 two RCMP officers responded to a call that alleged a female was sexually assaulted and being held against her will by two males at an address in Opitsaht on Meares Island, according to a report from the IIO. This visit resulted in the shooting death of 28-year-old Julian Jones. Jones was the second Tla-o-qui-aht member to die during a police incident in less than two years. In 2020 Chantal Moore, a 26-year-old mother, was killed by police in New Brunswick during a wellness check. The IIO found the officers at no fault in both instances. The Tla-o-qui-aht Calls To Action include RCMP to have de-escalation training rather than drawing a weapon (No. 8) and for the IIO to be culturally sensitive to Tla-o-qui-aht culture, history and needs (No. 9). 'It must see people as human beings, not just a police file,' reads Call To Action Number 9. In an effort to improve public transparency and accountability, Tofino RCMP started being equipped with body-worn cameras around December 2024. The IIO investigation into Julian Jones' death also appointed a Tla-o-qui-aht member as a civilian monitor, who overlooked details of the process and filed a report to the office's chief civilian director. This report stated that IIO investigators 'were friendly but neutral'. Despite these measures, the scale of tragedy in recent years is too much to bear, says Moore's grandmother. 'We've lost too many. It's been a rough road,' said Grace Frank during the May 9 Walk to Remember. 'I'm really proud of the justice committee that has been put together in my nation, for all that you are doing to for our people and the loved ones that we've lost. It really hurts to see how many we have lost.' Her grandson, Michael Martin, passed away in a jail cell five and a half months after Moore was fatally shot by police. 'My daughter is still dealing with what happened to my grandson. It's taken too long to find out what happened to him,' she said. 'It's been a real struggle. I just want to say to be there for each other. Our family has been through a lot.' Elder Dora Frank (yaawa) carried a poster asking, 'What really happened to Iris Frank?' Iris Frank was a young Tla-o-qui-aht teen when she went missing in Port Alberni in 1980. Weeks after she went missing, her remains were found – by her father – near the Paper Mill Dam on the Somass River, according to haw̓iiḥtaqumł (House of Wickaninnish). 'The police just kept saying, 'She'll come back'. They never did an investigation and they closed the case,' haw̓iiḥtaqumł told the Ha-Shilth-Sa. Call To Action (Number 1) states the RCMP need to respond immediately when an Indigenous person is reported to be missing. Tla-o-qui-aht women who are still missing incldue Edith Margaret Claver, who hasn't been seen since 2009, and Lisa Marie Young, who went missing from Nanaimo on June 30, 2002. 'These calls to action are only a start for Tla-o-qui-aht and will grow until these ongoing injustices are recognized and addressed,' states the Tla-o-qui-aht Justice Committee. Tofino RCMP Detachment Sergeant Owen Smith attended the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People and Children Day dressed in civilian clothes. He shared a table and ate lunch with Tla-o-qui-aht Chief Elmer Frank and Tofino Mayor Dan Law. Speakers throughout the day also drew attention to Indigenous children in care and children that never returned home from residential school. Tla-o-qui-aht Call To Action (Number 17) tasks the Provincial Court to advocate for children in care and (Number 20) calls on the provincial and federal governments to fund an investigation of the children who did not return home from residential school. -30- Captions 1-DoraFrank: Elder Dora Frank (yaawa) wants to know what really happened to her sister Iris Frank, who was found dead by the Somass River weeks after she went missing. (Nora O'Malley photos)
