Shooting by Edmonton police officer was lawful: ASIRT

A man is recovering in hospital after an officer involved shooting in northeast Edmonton

Edmonton — The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team has found that an Edmonton Police Service officer acted lawfully when they shot a 34-year-old man on Mar. 30, 2017.

The shooting happened in the area of 128 Avenue and 52 Street on March 30, 2017. Police had been following the man in his vehicle.

According to ASIRT, police received information between March 25 and 27 that the man had guns, and was willing to use them against police. He had a history of gun-related charges, and was on release for offences related to gun charges.

Police began surveillance on the man on Mar. 27 and observed him breaching his bail conditions.

On Mar. 28, they did a curfew check on the man’s home, but found that he was out. They left a message with the man’s common-law partner with a request to call police.

On Mar. 30, the man made contact with police, who advised him that he had a warrant and was in violation of his bail conditions. The man said he was willing to voluntarily surrender, and a police officer said he would call the man back.

When police called the man back around 6 p.m., he told officer he wanted to speak to a lawyer. He became increasingly agitated during the call, and finally hung up.

Surveillance officers advised that the man left the home carrying a black bag and got into a nearby car. As he left the parking lot, officers attempted to follow, but he performed an illegal u-turn, ran a red light and evaded police.

The car was found abandoned two blocks from where he had lost the officers.

Around 6:20 p.m., a plain-clothes officer who was not involved with the surveillance team found the man on foot at 128 Avenue and 52 Street.

A second officer, this one from the surveillance team, and two civilians arrived at the scene shortly after.

The plain-clothes officer confronted the man and told him he was under arrest.

Police said the man ignored the command and put his hand into the pocket of his sweatpants. The officer reported that he appeared to be pulling a black item out of the pocket.

Given the man’s history with guns, the officer fired at the man, according to ASIRT.

A black cell phone was found near his head after the shooting.

ASIRT found that the officer was justified in believing the man could be armed and pose a risk of death or grievous bodily harm. As such, the officer’s use of force was found to be justified under the Criminal Code of Canada.