Call for police watchdogs growing across Canada

July 27, 2010
Shannon Kari, National Post

Standing on the front steps of the sandstone facade of the Osgoode Hall courthouse in downtown Toronto, Evelyn Minty grieved openly about the loss of her son, Douglas, who was fatally shot by an Ontario Provincial Police officer last year.

"I want answers. I want to know what happened with my son," she said outside a court hearing this spring. "I don't want mothers to go through what I have gone through. It's been a year. I can't forget it. I can't sleep nights."

Her developmentally disabled 59-year-old son had a knife and was allegedly approaching an officer in the small community of Elmvale, about 120 kilometres northwest of Toronto, when he was killed.

The Special Investigations Unit (SIU), the civilian agency in Ontario that probes incidents of serious harm or death involving police, ultimately decided not to charge the officers involved. It was not an unexpected decision: No criminal charges have been laid against a police officer in Ontario in any of the 45 fatal shootings of civilians over the past decade.

Frustrated by the lack of information about the case, the Minty family and relatives of Levi Schaeffer, another man fatally shot last year by police, went to Ontario Superior Court. They want the court to order an end to practices such as officers consulting with lawyers before drafting their notes in these types of cases. What is unusual is that the families have the support of the SIU. Its director, Ian Scott, agreed that the vetting of notes and the potential for collusion when several officers retain the same lawyer are preventing the agency from conducting independent and timely investigations.

It is the first time in the two decades since the SIU was created that its director has complained publicly about impediments to investigating police.

Standing on the other side of the court aisle were lawyers representing every major police organization in Ontario.

"We have a pretty good model," said Ron Bain, executive director of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, in an interview. "The SIU has evolved over time to be more operationally sound. I am not hearing anything out of the Atttorney-General's office that the SIU needs changing."

Resisting change, however, may be a futile pursuit. The call for better police oversight is growing.

The Alberta and Manitoba governments are moving to greater civilian oversight of incidents of serious injury or death to a civilian involving police. The Toronto Police Services Board has agreed to a review of the actions that led to the arrest of hundreds of people at the G20 summit in June.

Perhaps most prominent are the recommendations of Thomas Braidwood, who presided over the inquiry into the death of Robert Dziekanski, who died after being Tasered at Vancouver International Airport in 2007. He is calling for the creation of an oversight agency with the broadest powers in the country. "The debate is no longer whether British Columbians should have a civilian-based investigative body, but what it should look like," wrote the retired B.C. Court of Appeal judge in his report released last month.

One recommendation, which by Mr. Braidwood acknowledges is potentially controversial, is that the new agency would eventually be made up only of civilian investigators. This is not the case in Ontario, where most SIU investigators are retired officers.

This is not something police in B.C. would necessarily oppose. "Our concern is only that the investigators have the proper training and expertise," said Clayton Pecknold, president of the B.C. Association of Chiefs of Police.

The association first said last fall that it supported a civilian oversight agency in B.C. "These investigations take up a lot of resources. We are happy to have an agency take this one on," said Mr. Pecknold, who also serves as deputy chief constable of the Central Saanich Police Service.

"While we have confidence in our past investigations, we need to deal with public perception. Let's get this up and running."

The B.C. Civil Liberties Association is also urging the province to move quickly to implement the Braidwood recommendations. "I am very optimistic. This is what the public wants," said Robert Holmes, president of the civil liberties group. "Oversight is not about criminal charges [against police], it is about public confidence."

For its part, the B.C. government indicated the new oversight agency would be up and running within a year. Attorney-General Michael de Jong declined a request for an interview.

Julian Falconer, who represents the Minty and Schaeffer families, said better oversight will increase public confidence in police. "It does police services no good to justify or conceal bad policing. Good police officers should not be left out of the equation of those who benefit from effective oversight," Mr. Falconer said.

In Ontario, there may also be political obstacles for the SIU, as well as the relatives of Mr. Minty and Mr. Schaeffer.

Superior Court Justice Wailan Low ruled recently that it was not for the courts to decide on whether the vetting of notes and one lawyer representing multiple officers violate Police Act regulations. While two provincial reports recommended an end to the practices, "whether the government adopts the suggestions in the reports and enacts laws to implement them is within its province alone," she concluded.

Lacking confidence that the Ontario government will act on those two reports, the families recently filed an appeal of Judge Low's ruling. That appeal is unlikely to be heard until the fall.

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SIU FACTS

Often described in other provinces as the "gold standard" for civilian oversight of police panels, the Special Investigations Unit in Ontario, however, has been beset by controversy since it was created in 1990. Some facts:

-No fewer than seven government-commissioned reports have examined policing, oversight and the complaint process since the SIU was created.

-Its annual budget of $6.8-million (according to its 2008 annual report, the most recent available) is less than half that of the Police Ombudsman of Northern Ireland, even though Ontario has seven times the population.

-Between 2003 and 2008, criminal charges were laid against police in less than 2% of the more than 1,000 cases investigated.

-A 2008 report by Ontario Ombudsman Andre Marin, himself a former SIU director, suggested it was still a "fledgling" organization that was "administratively and technically challenged."

Manitoba policing agencies review RCMP's new Taser policy

Go Manitoba!! Now, there remains only NINE more provinces that need to distribute the RCMP's new policy on taser use to ALL municipal police agencies: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland.

"[Attorney General Andrew] Swan said his office WILL NOT ORDER municipal police agencies to adopt the new RCMP standards. That will be UP TO THEM he said, adding the RCMP tend to be "PERSUASIVE" when policies change."

The pressure is on - I'm sure Manitoba and the other nine provinces will eventually come around and do the right thing.

WINNIPEG -- The RCMP’s new policy on Taser-use has been distributed to all municipal police agencies in Manitoba, Attorney General Andrew Swan said Wednesday.

Swan said Manitoba Justice officials forwarded the policy Wednesday so that each of the 13 municipal forces, including the Winnipeg Police Service, were aware of what the Mounties were doing.

The RCMP introduced the new policy Tuesday. The revamped operational manual says officers should limit Taser use to incidents in which a person is "causing bodily harm" or will "imminently" lash out.

The new RCMP policy also says that when possible, Mounties should warn suspects they’re about to be zapped.

The directive mirrors a recommendation from former judge Thomas Braidwood, head of a B.C. public inquiry on Taser use prompted by the 2007 death of airline passenger Robert Dziekanski at the Vancouver airport.

The change also comes in response to criticism from human-rights advocates that the Taser was often being used to make people comply with police commands, not to defuse the most serious threats.

Swan said his office will not order municipal police agencies to adopt the new RCMP standards. That will be up to them he said, adding the RCMP tend to be "persuasive" when policies change.

Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Jason Michalyshen said in a statement city police are satisfied with their current policy.

"The Winnipeg Police Service is aware of changes made to the RCMP policy and have reviewed their report," Michalyshen said in an email. "The Winnipeg Police Service is satisfied with its current policy as it is based on the totality of circumstances involved in each encounter and places the onus on the officer to justify and articulate its use."

Two years ago Michael Langan, 17, died after he was tasered by city police in a William Avenue back alley.

Two police officers had chased the teenager there after he stole something from a nearby car. An officer stunned Langan after he allegedly threatened officers with a knife. An autopsy report says Langan’s death was caused by a heart arrhythmia brought on by the Taser shocks. His family have said they intend to sue Taser International. A provincial inquest will also be called.

The RCMP policy also says multiple firings of the Taser may be hazardous. It also reinstates direction that officers must not use the stun gun for more than five seconds on a person and should avoid multiple bursts unless necessary.

Outside police agency to investigate Taser allegations against Manitoba RCMP

December 21, 2009
The Canadian Press

WINNIPEG — An outside police force is going to investigate a Manitoba man's allegations that RCMP officers used excessive force in firing a stun gun at him.

Matthew Gray of Portage la Prairie says he was beaten and hit with a Taser while he was handcuffed in an ambulance in 2003. Gray filed a private prosecution against several RCMP officers, and Manitoba Justice has appointed a special prosecutor to take over the case.

That prosecutor, Marty Minuk, told court an outside police agency will investigate the allegations and report back in the new year.

Gray, who is 47, is a former soldier who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and called a hospital psychiatric ward for help in June 2003.

RCMP court documents say Gray was handcuffed at his own request and became extremely aggressive in the ambulance.

RCMP defend Taser use on girl, 16

November 5, 2009
CBC News

A Selkirk, Man., RCMP officer denies any wrongdoing in the case of a teenage girl who says she was injured with a Taser while in police custody two years ago.

The incident, and a resulting lawsuit by the girl against the RCMP, the City of Selkirk, the province and the federal justice minister, have raised concerns about the use of Tasers by police on minors.

In a statement of defence obtained by CBC News on Wednesday, Const. Roger Gavel asks Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench to throw out the lawsuit, saying the use of the stun gun on the girl was legitimate.

"The actions of the RCMP members … were justified, and necessary, in the circumstances," the documents said.

Gavel's defence — written by a lawyer from the federal Department of Justice — was filed on Oct. 14.

The girl, who was 16 when taken to the Selkirk RCMP detachment on Nov. 3, 2007, is seeking an unspecified amount of financial damages for physical and emotional trauma. She cannot be named because of provisions in the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

The teenager was taken into custody after she and some friends were found drunk in her parents' van, which her mother had reported stolen.

In her statement of claim, the girl says she was put in a cell by several officers, and after punching or shoving one of them, was allegedly shoved onto the floor, knelt on by four officers, and hit with a stun gun in her thighs three times.

In the documents, Gavel admits that a stun gun was used, but only after "it became necessary to physically restrain [the girl, and] fit her with a spit mask."

Contrary to the girl's claims of being shocked numerous times, the documents said the Taser was "successfully applied" only once to the inside of the girl's thigh.

"[She] neither requested, nor presented as requiring, medical attention," the documents said.

The girl was only being held at the detachment at the request of her mother, who refused to come and take her home, the documents said.

No criminal charges were ever laid in connection to the stolen vehicle complaint, and no trial date for the lawsuit to be heard in court has been set.

Gavel and the attorney general claim powers granted them under the Intoxicated Persons Detention Act afforded them the authority to use force in this case.

Taser use on kids
After the lawsuit was filed, the teen's lawyer, Katherine Dunn, called for a moratorium on the use of stun guns on minors.

"There doesn’t seem to be any reason being brought forward why they’re not placing a moratorium on the use of Tasers against anyone, and particular, young people," Dunn told CBC News. "Because there has been incidents of deaths as a result of the use of Tasers," she said.

In early February, Ontario's child advocate called for the Ontario Provincial Police to stop using the devices after a 14-year-old girl with fetal alcohol syndrome was shocked while in police custody in Sioux Lookout, Ont.

Youth and justice advocates in the Northwest Territories quickly followed suit in their criticism of the practice.

In July, 2008, 17-year-old Michael Langan died after police used a stun gun on him in a central Winnipeg alleyway.

Teen who says she was injured by Mountie stun gun sues RCMP in Manitoba

July 13, 2009
By THE CANADIAN PRESS

WINNIPEG — A Selkirk, Man., woman who says RCMP repeatedly zapped her with a Taser is suing the Mounties.

The woman, who was 16-years-old at the time, says she and her friends were pulled over by police looking for a stolen car in 2007 and brought to the Selkirk detachment.

In her statement of claim, the woman says she was put in a cell and repeatedly Tasered by male police officers who taunted her.

The woman is seeking unspecified damages, alleging that the police action was unjustified and has left her with permanent scars on her legs and an inability to go to work or school.

The statement of claim contains allegations that have not been proven in court.

The RCMP has not yet filed a statement of defence.

RCMP taking 200 Tasers out of service in Saskatchewan

June 3, 2009
By Joe Couture, Regina Leader-Post

REGINA — The RCMP is taking almost 200 Tasers out of its arsenal in Saskatchewan.

Earlier this week, the RCMP announced that it would pull more than 1,500 older-model Tasers — also known as conducted-energy devices or conducted-energy weapons — from service in detachments across the country on the grounds that they might not generate a powerful enough electrical charge.

In Saskatchewan, the move will take out of service 193 of the older Tasers, according to a spokesman for the RCMP.

The decision to take the M26 Taser out of service came after B.C. government tests showed the majority of the units tested were "underperforming."

Results of the tests showed that 80 per cent of the devices failed to operate within the manufacturer specifications.

Ninety per cent of the units produced less electrical output than would be expected, "potentially presenting both public and officer safety risks," according to a news release from the RCMP.

The RCMP will test all M26 units in its inventory across the country, and only those confirmed to be functioning properly will be returned to active service.

In a statement provided to the Leader-Post on Wednesday, the company that makes Tasers defended its products.

"Taser International stands behind the quality and safety of its electronic control devices," said spokesman Peter Holran, noting that it is "not unusual for some high-tech electrical devices to experience a slight degradation in the electrical components over time."

Holran said his understanding is that the M26 units tested in B.C. fell below the specifications for energy output.

"A lower energy output equates to a higher safety margin, and, therefore, the medical safety of these devices is not in question," Holran continued. "Since there has been confusion over proper testing protocol and specification . . . under no circumstance should any of these devices be destroyed so as to preclude further analysis by other labs."

The RCMP's inventory also includes more than 1,500 Tasers of the X26 model, which is smaller and produces less output, while "achieving the same operational result," stated the RCMP.

The intention is to eventually replace all of the M26 models with X26 models.

The RCMP has 109 X26 model Tasers currently in service in Saskatchewan.

In the first six months of 2008 — the most recent period for which statistics are available on the RCMP's website — members in Saskatchewan activated Tasers 41 times. In addition, officers presented or threatened to use Tasers — but did not activate them — 61 times.

The total of 102 deployments is higher than that in any other province or territory, except Alberta and B.C., where Tasers were used 131 and 227 times, respectively. In Manitoba, Tasers were deployed 51 times in the first half of 2008.

The RCMP's responsibilities differ in every province. There weren't any statistics for Ontario or Quebec, where the force has a limited policing presence.

In B.C., where the RCMP is responsible for many highly populated urban areas, its 9,500 employees make up almost one-third of the entire national force.

In Saskatchewan there are about 1,200 members, not including those connected to Depot Division. In Alberta, there are about 2,200 members and in Manitoba, there are about 1,150 RCMP employees.

Man petitions court to charge Mounties for using Taser on him

May 19, 2009
CBC News

A retired soldier who says RCMP officers used Tasers on him while he was handcuffed was in court Tuesday to take on the Mounties.

Matthew Gray, 47, is presenting evidence at a hearing in provincial court in Winnipeg this week in an attempt to get a judge to authorize criminal charges against 15 officers and three civilian members of the RCMP.

The Portage la Prairie, Man., man says he suffers from post-traumatic stress, bipolar and anxiety-panic disorders. In June 2003, he wanted to be admitted to a mental-health facility, so he called a hospital psychiatric ward for help.

According to court documents filed in 2005, the hospital called RCMP, fearing Gray might be a danger to himself.

There was some confusion over whether Gray's committal to hospital would be voluntary or involuntary, and RCMP say he became violent and aggressive and a scuffle ensued. RCMP documents indicate Gray was handcuffed at his own request and a Taser was used on him twice in the hospital.

Taser used in ambulance
After he was given sedatives, the Taser was used again — more than once — during an ambulance ride to another hospital in Winnipeg, according to RCMP documents. An RCMP weapon-use report filed in court says Gray became "extremely aggressive" in the ambulance and freed himself from some restraints.

Officers used the Taser in the ambulance out of fear for the safety of ambulance attendants, police officers, other drivers on the road and Gray himself, RCMP said.

There is some dispute over how many times the Taser was used on Gray. He alleges it was used as many as eight times. The RCMP say it was four times, while hospital records indicate six.

Gray said police assertions that they arrested him under the Mental Health Act are false. Consequently, he believes police had no jurisdiction to detain him or use force against him.

He told the court he is also presenting facts to support his belief that RCMP officers are trying to cover up what happened to him. He says he has been the victim of a smear campaign by the federal force to discredit his reputation.

The Crown has appointed independent prosecutor Marty Minuk to observe the hearing but at this point, Minuk is not involved in the proceedings.

Armed and ready - Chief expects all police officers to have annual Taser training

March 8, 2009
By CHRIS KITCHING, SUN MEDIA

Winnipeg's top cop says he's confident the city's 1,300-plus officers will be re-trained on Taser use every 12 months -- on top of their regular duties and other training -- to continue carrying the weapon.

It will be a bit of a juggling act, however, to balance schedules of officers, whose training is done while they're on the clock, and for instructors to get everyone through on time.

"The challenges are getting the time available, making sure we still have (enough officers) on the street and making sure we have instructors available," police Chief Keith McCaskill said.

He made the remarks in response to a report that found some officers' training, as of last August, had not been revisited within the one-year window.

McCaskill said it was due to a change in training standards after city police began using Tasers in late 2006.

Re-training became an annual requirement, instead of every two years, according to standards created by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA).

There wasn't enough time to fit everyone into sessions before their year expired but even then the officers still had adequate training, McCaskill said.

To satisfy CALEA, the officers who missed their annual training were not allowed to use Tasers until they were re-trained by last December, the report found.

"It was difficult because we put them through in a couple of months. We were training days and evenings to get it done," McCaskill said.

Every officer's training is now up to date, he said.

The Taser re-training issue was brought up in a CALEA review and report on the renewal of the service's police accreditation.

CALEA gave city police straight As in its report, which cited few concerns but did identify well-documented complaints from the public -- long response times to low-priority calls and a strained relationship between police and aboriginals.

Three CALEA members visited Winnipeg last August to judge police on up to 460 standards, analyzing everything from operations and crime data to demographics and hiring practices. Participation in the process is voluntary.

What's wrong with this picture? And who's keeping track?

What follows are some reactions by police across Canada to the RCMP's taser use restrictions announced on February 12, 2009. Also included are a couple of quite obviously inappropriate and very recent uses of the weapon in both Belleville and Barrie, Ontario. There is no rhyme. There is no reason. Municipal police in Canada are doing whatever the hell they want.

February 16, 2009
Belleville Intelligencer
A man had to be subdued with a Taser when police attempted to break up a fight at a North Front Street bar early Monday. The incident occurred at about 2:30 a.m. Police said they broke up one fight and required a Taser — a stun gun — to subdue a man, who was resisting arrest. A Belleville man, 22 and a Campbellford male, 21, were arrested for public intoxication, causing a disturbance and mischief to property, police said. Both males were released and will appear in court March 26, police said. Names were not released.

February 14, 2009
The Barrie Examiner
Police use Taser to subdue man - Barrie police used a Taser to help arrest a six-foot-two, 350-pound man, yesterday. Officers were called to a Blake Street home about a 24-year-old with a history of mental health issues who was reportedly out of control. Police say the man was defiant when officers arrived and a Taser was used to incapacitate him, until he could be handcuffed.

February 13, 2009
Globe and Mail
Sergeant Scott Warren, chairman of the RCMP's officer safety committee, said the matter is more complicated in real-life situations. "The commissioner, with all due respect, is incorrect to say we wouldn't use them again for actively resistant people," he told CTV News.

February 12, 2009
CTV News
Police commissioner is out of touch, says officer
...But according to Sgt. Scott Warren, the chair of the RCMP's Officer Safety Committee, the so-called new regulations have been drawn up by officials who are out of touch with the realities of street-level policing. In an interview with CTV's Power Play, Warren also said that the regulations don't adequately address the split-second decisions police must make everyday. "Sometimes I think the commissioner is in over his head," said Warren, referring to Elliott, who is the first-ever civilian to head the national police force. Warren said that the previous policy governing Taser use was broad and trusted the judgment of individual police officers.

February 13, 2009
TREVOR PRITCHARD, STANDARD-FREEHOLDER, WITH FILES FROM THE CANADIAN PRESS
Most of the RCMP's new guidelines on the use of Tasers have already been implemented by municipal police forces in Ontario, including Cornwall, says the city's chief of police. Chief Dan Parkinson said much of the RCMP policy announced Thursday - which will prohibit the stun guns from being used to simply subdue suspects - is reflected in an October 2008 report filed by the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP) to the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services.

February 13, 2009
660 News Calgary
The Calgary Sun reports, city police say the devices are lifesavers and will not alter their approach to them.

February 13, 2009
CTV Calgary
In a written statement Friday, officials said they won't be making any changes to policies after Thursday's announcement by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

February 13, 2009
Metro News Vancouver
Vancouver police will continue to use Tasers until officers review the reasons behind an RCMP announcement on Thursday curbing the use of stun guns ... Const. Jana McGuinness, spokesperson for Vancouver police, said she hasn’t seen a report yet. “I would want to see how it impacts us, and if it does, what are our policies surrounding these things,” she said.

February 13, 2009
Metro News Edmonton
Police services in Edmonton are not going to change policies around Tasers, they say, after the RCMP moved to restrict the use of the stun guns because it can kill in certain cases.

February 14, 2009
Chronicle Herald
"It’s very unlikely there will be any changes to our policy, as it’s virtually the same as ours," said Const. Jeff Carr, spokesman for Halifax Regional Police.

February 14, 2009
Winnipeg Free Press
At present, Winnipeg officers are permitted to use a Taser in situations where force is required, where an individual is resisting arrest and may flee and if the individual is in a state of excited delirium. A suspect need not be combative to elicit a shot from a stun gun.

February 11, 2009
SARAH DEETH, Peterborough Examiner
Use of force by city police officers was down in 2008 from 2007, but the use of the Taser has increased.

Editorial: The taming of the taser

February 14, 2009
Winnipeg Free Press

The revelation this week by RCMP that the force now considers the Taser a potentially deadly weapon shows that police are divorcing themselves, finally, from the manufacturer's stalwart assurances the stun gun is a safe, non-lethal device. It is a useful development that other police forces in Canada should adopt in their training of officers in Taser use.

Since its introduction as a weapon of enforcement, police across Canada have become more comfortable with stun guns, a weapon of choice for subduing non-compliant, potentially violent suspects. Shot from a distance, a stun gun also saves officers from harm they might encounter in close contact with volatile people. But that same comfort with the weapon has triggered tragic results -- more than 20 Canadians have died after being stunned, with some of the deaths being blamed directly on the Tasering.

The allegations have been rejected by police forces and the electronic device's manufacturer. The manufacturer, Taser International, has insisted that the Taser does not disrupt heart function, but animal tests have shown it can. Police forces were undeterred.

Now, however, RCMP commissioner William Elliot has told a House of Commons committee that the national police force has formally curbed the use of the stun gun. A review of the RCMP policy following the tragic death of Robert Dziekanski at the Vancouver airport in 2007 discovered that officers had begun to pull out their stun gun with greater frequency -- usage creep -- to immobilize those who were "actively resistant," which could mean simply refusing to be handcuffed. Mr. Dziekanski was visibly upset when RCMP officers approached him, but he was neither physically violent, nor threatening when he was Tasered, twice, and then physically restrained. He died within minutes of heart failure.

The new RCMP policy classifies the weapon as carrying a risk of death, particularly to people in a heightened, agitated state. It restricts the use of a Taser to cases where there exists danger to the public or the officers.

The RCMP has had long, robust experience with the use of stun guns. The development should inform other forces, including the Winnipeg Police Service, in the training and use of the guns. At present, Winnipeg officers are permitted to use a Taser in situations where force is required, where an individual is resisting arrest and may flee and if the individual is in a state of excited delirium. A suspect need not be combative to elicit a shot from a stun gun.

It has taken some hard, sad lessons to spark a refinement of the RCMP policy, to recognize that contrary to manufacturer claims, stun guns are not quite as safe as originally thought. Instructing officers in the use of the weapon, in that context, and particularly cautioning them against Tasering a suspect in a state of extreme agitation, should lead to a reduction in its use. The Winnipeg force should rewrite its protocol on training and Taser use.

Police shouldn't be investigating themselves: Ontario ombudsman

January 14, 2009
The Globe and Mail

WINNIPEG — All provinces should follow the lead of Ontario and Manitoba and establish a civilian unit to hold police to account or risk more internal investigations marred by favouritism, Ontario's ombudsman said Wednesday.

Andre Marin just completed an investigation into Ontario's special investigations unit and is advising Manitoba on the creation of a similar body. He said police show bias when they investigate one of their own and Canadians deserve better.

“Police should not be investigating other police when there is serious injury or death,” said Mr. Marin, who once headed Ontario's special investigations unit. “When they do so, inevitably the investigations will suffer from favouritism and bring into question the results of those investigations. “The public will never be satisfied.”

Alberta will only allow civilians to observe investigations involving police while officers remain “in the driver's seat,” Mr. Marin said. Despite questionable investigations into police shootings in Quebec and British Columbia, both provinces defend the status quo, he added.

Police in Manitoba have come under fire for their botched investigation into a fatal traffic collision involving an off-duty Winnipeg constable. A public inquiry was called after Crystal Taman died in February 2005 when her car was rear-ended by the officer at a red light. Derek Harvey-Zenk, who had been drinking that night, pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing death and was given two years of house arrest. An inquiry concluded the investigation into Ms. Taman's death was “riddled with incompetence” and recommended Manitoba set up an independent body to conduct similar probes into police conduct.

Police who investigate themselves often give officers months before asking for a statement because they “need time” to recover from the trauma, Mr. Marin said. The same courtesy is not extended to civilian witnesses, who are immediately segregated and questioned.

He pointed to the passengers on board a Greyhound bus on which a young man was decapitated last summer.

Although police say civilians aren't equipped with the necessary investigation skills, Marin said that is a self-serving argument. It doesn't take a genius — or a police officer — to probe alleged wrongdoing by police, he said.

“You don't have a mass murderer on the loose,” Mr. Marin said. “It's a question of whether there was legal justification for causing serious injury or death.”

Winnipeg police pull some tasers out of service over concerns about bigger jolts

December 10, 2008
The Canadian Press

WINNIPEG — Winnipeg police have become the latest law enforcement agency to pull some of its Tasers out of service over concerns they may give a bigger jolt of electricity than specified by the manufacturer.

In a news release, Winnipeg police say recent tests conducted by National Technical Systems determined that a number of devices manufactured before 2005 may conduct a higher electrical current than first thought.

The review applies to all X26 models acquired before 2005.

Law enforcement officials in British Columbia are also pulling those same models out of use.

In Fredericton, N.B., officials say they will test the models that they have, but won't pull them out of service.

Probe into tasering of teenaged girl reopened

September 6, 2008
JOE FRIESEN, Globe and Mail

The RCMP have reopened a criminal investigation into the case of an officer accused of tasering a teenage girl while his colleagues held her down inside a police jail cell.

The girl, 16 at the time, filed a complaint with Manitoba RCMP last year and was told in July that an internal investigation had concluded no criminal offence was committed. But a month after the girl went public with her case, the RCMP decided to reopen the investigation, which will now be conducted by a senior investigator from outside the force.

The girl's lawyer, Catherine Dunn, said the only thing that changed in the interim was the prominent coverage her client's case received in the media.

"It was only after making her complaint public that the RCMP took the view that an independent police service should reinvestigate this matter. One would have thought that would be a preliminary decision as opposed to a review decision," Ms. Dunn said.

The RCMP also confirmed to Ms. Dunn that as many as eight officers were in and around her client's cell at the time of the incident. "The number of people involved and the manner in which [the girl] was attacked is suggestive of a group sexual assault as opposed to a detention," Ms. Dunn said, referring to the fact that the tasering was inflicted within inches of her groin area.

The incident occurred in November, 2007, at the RCMP detachment in Selkirk, Man., 35 kilometres north of Winnipeg. The girl, who was arrested as a minor and can't be named, was picked up by police after her parents came home, found the family minivan missing and reported it stolen. The girl was detained (but never charged) and taken to the local detachment.

Police told her that since she was intoxicated she would have to be held overnight. The girl admits she resisted officers when they attempted to put her in a cell, holding onto her chair and fighting back as they dragged her away.

The officers removed items of her clothing, including her bra, and threw her into the cell, the girl said. She hit out at the last officer as he left the cell, striking him in the back, at which point he called the others back in, the girl said.

She believes four officers held her down, one on each limb, while a taser was used against her. The weapon struck her three times in the leg and groin area, and left her screaming in pain, she said. She still suffers irregular shooting pains in her legs and sees a psychologist to help her deal with the emotional trauma.

Her mother wants to know why the officers didn't simply walk away and leave her daughter in the locked cell. She said she believes her daughter's rough treatment was exacerbated because she is aboriginal.

The RCMP said in a letter to the girl's mother that the investigation will be conducted by a senior investigator with the Calgary police service, and is expected to take two to three weeks.

The girl has been allowed to receive third-party feedback during the investigation, which means she has appointed someone to act on her behalf from the Manitoba Métis Federation who will receive daily e-mails or updates from police on the progress of the investigation. But the third party will not be allowed to review videotaped interviews and the video surveillance footage of the girl's cell at the time of the incident.

"This decision in and of itself continues to show that the RCMP do have something to hide with respect to this incident and their investigation," Ms. Dunn said.

Manitoba Liberal Leader calls for suspension on taser usage

July 31, 2008
BREAKING NEWS - Winnipeg Free Press

Following a recent Taser related death, Manitoba Liberal Leader Dr. Jon Gerrard today charged the provincial government with continuing to put Manitobans at risk by failing to provide and implement guidelines for proper Taser usage.

"The lack of appropriate guidelines and standards for Taser usage creates a tough situation for law enforcement officers," Dr. Gerrard said. "I have called for a suspension on Taser use for some time now and recent events have reinforced this notion that Taser usage should be put on hold until proper guidelines and protocols are available and implemented."

On the afternoon of Tuesday, July 22, Michael Langan, 17, was shocked by a police Taser in a back lane behind 871 William Ave. He was rushed to the nearby Health Sciences Centre in critical condition and was pronounced dead.

Langan was the first person to die in Manitoba after being Tasered by a police officer.

A fatal Taser incident in British Columbia in October 2007 sparked national outrage.

"This is an issue of humanity and the fact that a weapon labeled as non-lethal has on several occasions caused fatalities is ample reason to reassess the situation," Dr. Gerrard said.

Saskatchewan released its taser report, listing 21 recommendations including the call for a multi-disciplinary team with medical practitioners to analyze complied data on the human effects of Tasers.

Tasers have been used in Canada since 1999 and according to Amnesty International there have been more than 290 fatalities in North America following Taser shocks since 2001, approximately 22 occurring in Canada.

Police, experts grapple over Taser guidelines following teen's death

July 25, 2008
Jordana Huber, Canwest News Service

TORONTO - Police say Michael Langan was armed, dangerous and ignoring orders to drop his knife moments before he was Tasered in a Winnipeg back alley.

The car-theft suspect became the latest Canadian, and the youngest according to Amnesty International, to die in a Taser-related incident.

The subsequent controversy has thrust police in the Manitoba capital into the spotlight of the ongoing debate about Taser safety, and has provided more ammunition for opponents of the "electronic control device" who have long called on law-enforcement agencies to suspend its use.

Frank Addario is president of the Criminal Lawyers' Association, which has called for a moratorium on the use of the weapon pending an inquiry into its safety He said officer training lacks uniformity and follow-up procedures are either ineffective or incomplete - making it difficult to determine whether police are strictly limiting Tasers to situations where subjects pose a probable threat of serious injury to themselves or to others.

"This is not about whether one supports the police or whether one empathizes with their abilities in managing unruly suspects," Addario said. "This is about whether the weapon, as designed, is delivering what it promised, and if it is not, police forces in Canada ought to stop using it until better training can occur or the weapon can be modified."

Tasers are billed by police forces and the device's manufacturer as an effective weapon that can save lives and reduce injury to officers and suspects.

Critics warn there is no medical consensus on their safety and say public confidence in Tasers as a "non-lethal" use of force is increasingly being eroded in the wake of more than 20 deaths in Canada since 2003 linked to - though not blamed on - the conductive energy weapon.

Amid the public outcry following the release of a video of Robert Dziekanski, a Polish immigrant who was Tasered in October, 2007 at Vancouver International Airport by the RCMP, a report by the Mounties public complaints commission chairman Paul Kennedy urged the RCMP to reign in their use of Tasers.

He said it appeared Tasers were being deployed by RCMP more often and much earlier in encounters with suspects than originally intended when they were adopted. Still, the extent of "usage creep" was impossible to determine because the Mounties had engaged in "systematic under-reporting."

According to documents obtained under the Access to Information Act by Canwest News Service, the overall use of Tasers by the RCMP soared to 1,119 incidents in 2006 and 1,414 in 2007, compared with only 597 incidents in 2005.

Municipal police forces across the country largely classify Tasers as "intermediate weapons" and consider them an appropriate option for subjects "actively resistant" towards an officer, Kennedy said in his report.

Still, he noted there remain "subtle but significant differences" in operational policies surrounding their use.

Earlier this month, Nova Scotia placed interim restrictions limiting Tasers to "situations of violent or aggressive resistance or active threat that may cause serious injury," following the release of a report into the death of a 45-year-old man who passed away hours after officers deployed a Taser.

Ontario only allows tactical officers or front-line supervisors to carry Tasers, while they are a standard tool of front-line police in Winnipeg, Calgary, and in Edmonton.

Dziekanski's death prompted the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary to hold off on plans to expand their use of Tasers. The Saskatchewan Police Commission announced Friday it won't authorize the use of the devices by members of the province's 14 municipal and First Nation police services. However, SWAT team members will continue to be authorized to use them.

Addario said the varying protocols for Taser deployment need to be harmonized across the country so all police forces are "singing from the same songbook" when it comes to the circumstances under which Tasers should be used.

A briefing note reviewing current medical research and literature on Tasers prepared for the Canadian Association of Police Boards in March suggested deaths or injuries that occur proximal to the use of the Taser will continue to prompt "flare ups" from the public that likely will result in ongoing pressure to define more precisely when a Taser should and should not be deployed.

The report added policies dictating when officers can deploy a Taser could be detrimental to good policing and counter-productive because use of force is contingent on a mix of circumstances at any scene.

There is no "black and white" answer, said RCMP Const. Donald Perrett. He monitors and compiles daily reports of Taser use by officers across the country.

"Police work is dynamic," Perrett said. "It is difficult to say when and how, because two police officers can look at the exact same situation and will both respond differently."

In May, a study by researchers published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal said despite research suggesting Tasers don't hurt internal organs such as the heart, "it is inappropriate to conclude stun-gun discharges cannot lead to adverse cardiac consequences in all real-world settings."

Accompanying the research was an editorial by CMAJ deputy editor Dr. Matthew Stanbrook who said Taser safety has become a public health issue as law-enforcement officials preach the benefits of deploying the weapon when dealing with subjects suffering "excited delirium."

The highly controversial diagnosis is not recognized by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders but has increasingly been listed by coroners as a cause of death in people restrained by police during an altercation - regardless of whether a Taser was used.

Associated with individuals who have taken drugs, alcohol or who have a mental illness, symptoms can include agitation and super-human strength and can lead to sudden death, some researchers suggest.

Many police trainers teach officers excited delirium is a medical emergency and the sooner someone is taken into care, the better off they will be.

It's a recommendation endorsed by several coroner's juries - most recently by a panel in Ontario looking into the death of amateur boxer Jerry Knight, who fought more than 20 officers before being subdued during an incident in a motel lobby in 2004.

Mike Webster, a police psychologist, said "well-meaning" law-enforcement officials have been "brainwashed" by the device's manufacturer to justify "ridiculously and inappropriate" use of the weapon for a disorder that doesn't exist.

"Police have been indoctrinated into believing in this fictitious disorder - this excited delirium - and it is presented as a rational for the use of the weapon," said Webster who testified at public inquiry in B.C. probing Tasers.

Meanwhile, Winnipeg Police Chief Keith McCaskill warned this week it is far too early to pass judgment on the circumstances surrounding Langan's death.

But he said police in the city are trained "very clearly" on how to respond to situations such as the one two patrol officers were confronted with on Tuesday.

The teenager was the first person to die in Manitoba after being subdued by a police stun gun.

Manitoba Metis Federation president David Chartrand and Langan's mother, Sharon Shymko, were scheduled to meet McCaskill Friday afternoon to discuss their concerns that the teen, who is Metis, was a victim of racial profiling by police.

At a hastily organized news conference Friday, Chartrand and Shymko expressed displeasure at media coverage of Langan's lifestyle before his death, based on interviews with the boy's father, and revelations in the Winnipeg Free Press that the teen had four citations under the Intoxicated Persons Detention Act.

"He had a future . . . he had dreams," said Shymko, who said she was ill after reading some of the news accounts.

A wake and funeral is planned for the teen early next week in Winnipeg, and reporters have been asked to stay away.

Langan had been staying with his father in a rooming house in the weeks before his death, after moving back to the city from Kelowna, B.C., where he'd been living with his mother since April.

The boy had an erratic upbringing, mostly in Winnipeg.

Mounties pinned me down in cell and tasered me, Manitoba girl says

July 25, 2008
JOE FRIESEN, The Globe and Mail

WINNIPEG -- A 17-year-old girl says she was tasered three times while confined to an RCMP holding cell in Selkirk, Man.

The girl, who was 16 at the time of the incident, said she was held down by four officers, one for each limb, while a taser was used on her legs and groin area. She said the third shock lasted between five and eight seconds and left her screaming in pain.

She still has scarred skin tissue and irregular shooting pains in her legs, and is seeing a psychologist to deal with the trauma. Her mother wants to know why the officers had to resort to such force when they could have walked away and left her in the locked cell.

The RCMP carried out an internal investigation into the incident, which occurred last November, but the girl's lawyer said the force recently advised them in a letter that it had concluded there was no criminal wrongdoing.

The family will now proceed with a public complaint against the officers involved.

A spokesman for the RCMP said he couldn't comment on the specifics of the case.

But, speaking in general terms, the spokesman added that there's no prohibition against using tasers in cells. They are used when officers feel there is a risk to their safety, he said.

The girl, who was arrested as a minor and can't be named, admits she was behaving badly at the time.

She had been intoxicated and resisted officers when they attempted to put her in the holding cell overnight. She fought back, and eventually four officers threw her into the cell. She says she hit out in anger at the last officer to leave the cell, at which point he called the others back in and they held her down and tasered her.

"I think the tasering of a child under the age of 18 in a locked cell is an abominable and excessive use of force," said the girl's lawyer, Catherine Dunn.

The girl's mother said her daughter was never charged in connection with the incident. It began when her mother came home and found the family van missing and reported it stolen. Police intercepted the vehicle, which was being driven by her daughter's friend, and arrested the group of girls.

The RCMP then told her at the police station that she would be kept overnight because she was intoxicated. She says she panicked, and refused to let go of her chair. Two male officers then physically pulled her away, removed items of her clothing including her bra, and threw her into the cell.

That's when she was tasered.

"She's in a cell. She's no danger to anybody," her mother said. "Whatever she did, she didn't deserve to be tortured like that. ... As a parent, if I did that to a child I would be arrested, charged and my children would be apprehended."

Her mother said she believes her daughter's treatment was exacerbated because she's aboriginal.

The girl, who is a high-school student, said her wounds were painful for days. The taser broke the skin, leaving red and bloody circular marks on her thighs. The police didn't tell the girl's mother about the incident when she picked her up the next morning, and the girl was too ashamed to tell. As a result, the wounds became infected.

The recent death of a 17-year-old boy who was tasered by Winnipeg police brought horrible memories flooding back for the girl. She knew what he was feeling, she said: a hot, burning pain that rips through every muscle.

"I have dreams about it," she said. "It was like an intense, sharp, rushing pain through my whole body. They didn't need to taser me."

160 new tasers for Manitoba RCMP

May 20, 2008
By CANADIAN PRESS

WINNIPEG - The RCMP in Manitoba is buying more Tasers for its officers.

The provincial division of the police force has spent about $160,000 to buy and ship 160 newer models of the controversial weapons, which will increase the number of Tasers it uses by about 10 per cent.

Documents about the purchase say 26 of the Tasers will "increase the inventory" of units that are in use, while the rest will replace older models.

The new Tasers will be smaller, which the documents say will make it easier for plainclothes or undercover officers to conceal.

The documents were released to the Winnipeg Free Press under the federal Access to Information Act.

Manitoba RCMP spokeswoman Sgt. Line Karpish says the new purchases mean there will be 237 Tasers in use among approximately 1,000 officers in the province.

While the documents say the new Taser is 60 per cent smaller and 60 per cent lighter than the current Taser used by the RCMP, they say it has the same peak of 50,000 volts.

Taser use is a controversial subject following the high-profile death last October of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver International Airport. The 40-year-old, who did not speak English, was videotaped by a bystander after he was shocked by RCMP officers and lay convulsing on the floor of the airport, later dying.

Last Thursday at an inquiry into the incident, Dziekanski's mother wept as she urged an end to Taser use.

Manitoba Mounties started using Tasers in 2003.

The weapons are made at Arizona-based Taser International, said Karpish, and then they're fired and tested, catalogued and inventoried by an armourer in Regina.

Karpish said that no additional training will be required for officers using the newer model of Taser, beyond a two-day session required for all officers using the weapons.

The report notes other Taser products "would require a major retraining initiative at significant cost to the RCMP."

Manitoba aboriginal leaders want review of man's being shot, then stunned by taser

April 22, 2008
THE CANADIAN PRESS

WINNIPEG - Leaders from a remote Manitoba First Nation are questioning why an RCMP officer zapped a suspect with a Taser after shooting him with a gun during a confrontation earlier this month.

Police were called to investigate an assault April 5 on a snowmobile trail at the Manto Sipi Cree Nation, formerly known as God's Lake First Nation.

Terrance Yellowback, 27, admits he was brandishing a table leg and refused to drop it, despite an officer's commands to do so.

Yellowback says the constable fired two shots from her service pistol, missing with the first and striking him in the side with the second, before using the Taser on his chest.

Chief Roger Ross says the community has been kept in the dark about what happened, so he's asking Manitoba Justice Minister Dave Chomiak for an independent review to go along with the RCMP's investigation.

Yellowback is facing three assault charges, including assaulting a peace officer, along with a charge of resisting arrest.

Chief says force will continue to use taser

March 3, 2008
Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Police Service chief Keith McCaskill told the city's protection and community services oversight committee this morning that members on the force receive adequate use-of-force training as it relates to the devices, and that they will continue to use them in the course of daily policing.

"They're the right thing for Winnipeg right now -- they're not used indiscriminately," McCaskill said.

The city had asked for police to review the use of the stun guns in the wake of several national incidents where the use of Tasers was called into question after the recent death of a Polish man in Vancouver that sparked national outrage.

On Oct. 14, Robert Dziekanski died after being repeatedly Tasered and pinned to the floor by RCMP officers at the Vancouver airport.

McCaskill said a Taser has never been used by a member of the Winnipeg police who did not have the proper training, and said the department's policy regarding their responsible use is clear.

"As it stands right now, we're happy with the weapon," McCaskill said.

FOUR men, including two Canadians, dead after tasers FAIL

January 3, 2008

RCMP in Vernon, British Columbia say they used a Taser with little effect before they were forced to shoot and kill a mentally ill man on December 27th. According to reports, mounties used a taser to stun 24-year-old Christopher Klim, but it had "little effect" and the officers had to use their guns, firing two shots.

On December 18th, Winnipeg police said they were forced to shoot and kill a man after a taser stun gun "failed to have any effect" on him.

On Christmas day, a 28-year-old Washington man, Aaron Larson, died when police shot him after the officer's taser "failed to stop the man."

On January 2nd, a mentally ill man in Santa Rosa, California died after police shot him. They initially used a taser on the man, but it was "ineffective."