The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team has deemed that the actions of four Grande Prairie RCMP officers were reasonable and not criminal in connection with a fatal incident in 2023.
According to ASIRT, on October 15th, 2023, Grande Prairie RCMP officers conducted a wellness check on a man who was said to be intoxicated. According to the report, when police arrived on the scene, the man is said to have exited the house with a hunting rifle. According to reports, officers attempted to de-escalate the situation, ordering the man to put his gun down. However, the man is said to have ignored these commands and raised the hunting rifle in the officer’s direction.
The conclusion from ASIRT reads, “In this incident, there was no opportunity for police to explore other reasonable actions. De-escalation through verbal commands and discussion failed. A negotiator from the Emergency Response Team, assistance from PACT and a police dog handler were requested to attend the scene; however, the [affected person’s] actions caused the [suspect officers] to fire their service firearms before the negotiator, PACT, or dog arrived.”
According to officials, the man was attempting to provoke a response from officers by moving his gun around and telling them to “shoot me,” and telling them that he would point his firearm at them and give them a reason to shoot him. The reports stated that the officers had reason to assume that potential harm was imminent and they were at risk of death or grievous bodily harm.
“The [suspect officers] were aware from their training that it could take less than a second for a person holding a gun to transition to shooting.”
The findings also state, “A police officer also has the same self-defence under s. 34 of the Criminal Code as any other person. This section provides that a person does not commit an offence if they believe on reasonable grounds that force is being used or threatened against them or another person, if they act to defend themselves or another person from this force or threat, and if the act is reasonable in the circumstances.”
According to the ASIRT report, the wellness check was called in by a common-law partner who was asking for the man to be removed from the home because there were kids who lived there. At the time, the partner is said to have told police the man had made suicidal comments throughout the day, and had access to a rifle. It was also later learned that the man had a no-contact order in place and was not allowed to be in the home.
