VPD - Follow-up to In Custody Death of Robert Bagnell

Almost TWO MONTHS after Bob died, the VPD suddenly announced that there was a fire in the building the night Bob died and that tasers had to be used to "rescue" him from this burning building!! We have since learned that the *fire* was a small electrical fire from a faulty cable box in a first-floor apartment and that it posed no credible to threat to anyone beyond the first floor. At the coroner's inquest, some of the police officers testified that they saw and/or smelled smoke from the fifth floor. Others testified that they did not. However, all agreed that the fire alarm made communication among each other difficult and that the fire posed a significant danger to Bob's life. They were quite adamant that this "wood-framed" building would go up in flames very quickly. We visited the building with our lawyer and with CBC and we learned that it was a solid brick city-owned and frequently inspected building.

Not long before the VPD made this announcement, my mother asked of their police officers why they didn't just leave Bob in the washroom until he tired himself out since he wasn't a danger to anyone. The officer's answer? "That's a very good question, Mrs. Bagnell."

Here's what the VPD had to say 54 days after Bob's death.

August 16, 2004
Deputy Chief Constable Doug LePard
Vancouver Police Department

"As you are aware, B.C.`s Police Complaints Commissioner has ordered a review of the use of the Taser by BC police departments and, specifically, the use of it in connection with the in-custody death of Robert Bagnell on June 23rd.

When police were called to 1390 Granville St. (the Continental Hotel), they heard banging, crashing and yelling coming from a 5th floor communal bathroom. An ambulance attendant told them that the man inside, Robert Bagnell, was believed to have taken cocaine earlier. Police did not rush in.

Since Mr. Bagnell was alone in the washroom and was little danger to anyone else, police were prepared to wait. In the meantime, they called for less than lethal options, including a Taser and a beanbag shotgun. Shortly after, Emergency Response Team members arrived with that equipment.

The officers on the scene believed that Mr. Bagnell was experiencing a psychotic episode possibly triggered by cocaine. The banging and yelling coming from the washroom did not let up. Police tried calling to Mr. Bagnell, but were ignored.

Mr. Bagnell was alone. He was no danger to anyone else. There was no chance he could escape and hurt anyone. He was possibly committing a minor criminal act of destruction in the bathroom, but there was still no reason to rush in. Our members decided the safest course of action was to wait and hope Mr. Bagnell calmed down. Then things changed.

Just as they were settling down to wait, the fire alarm in the building went off. There was a fire on the ground floor of the hotel. Smoke began to fill the building. The police could not stay there any longer and they could certainly not leave Mr. Bagnell behind. The call to arrest Mr. Bagnell had now turned into a rescue.

When police entered the bathroom, they found Mr. Bagnell naked and covered in fresh blood from a wound to his leg. The floor was covered in blood and sweat and shards of broken porcelain were within his reach as he continued to yell and thrash.

Police attempted to calm him and use a low level of force to remove him by pulling on his feet, but he grabbed onto the fixtures in the bathroom stall and held on. Two large officers working together could not dislodge him. The situation was urgent. Smoke continued to fill the building.

In order to get Mr. Bagnell to release his grip, the officers touched Mr. Bagnell with the Taser for less than two seconds and he let go. Police were able to pull him back about a foot before he got another grip on the door frame. The Taser was applied again for less than a second and he released his grip.

As he was pulled into the hallway, he continued to fight as he was handcuffed. People suffering psychotic episodes driven by cocaine can often exhibit extraordinary strength and be oblivious to pain. He was kicking so hard that flexible restraints broke when police tried to restrain his feet with them.

Soon after he was restrained, police noticed that he had stopped breathing. Nearby ambulance attendants ran over and immediately began CPR. Ambulance and fire personnel tried for more than an hour to revive him, but were unsuccessful.

As you are aware, a toxicologist report later indicated that Mr. Bagnell had lethal levels of cocaine in his blood, along with a cocktail of other drugs."