Lilian Villanueva: My son, Fredy, died for nothing

CTV Montreal: A multitude of factors, a dead man Many different factors converged the night Fredy Villanueva died, says the coroner.

"My son Fredy, he died for nothing."

Those are the heartbreaking words of Lilian Villanueva on the day a coroner filed his final report into the death of her 18-year-old son.

Fredy Villanueva's older brother Dany was being arrested by police in August 2008 when Fredy intervened, putting Const. Jean-Loup Lapointe in a headlock as he grappled the arresting officer.

Fearing that Fredy was trying to grab his firearm, Const. Lapointe fired off four bullets, two of which struck Fredy in the chest and led to his death.

Struggling to say the words, Fredy's mother Lilian Villanueva said the image that has been painted of her younger son, as a would-be gang member who was trying to hurt police, is wrong.

"My son Fredy, he was not a thug," she said haltingly.

"He never wanted to disarm Const. Lapointe. He was not a threat to Lapointe's life."

Speaking on Tuesday afternoon representatives for the family said they appreciated the work done by the coroner, especially in pointing out the differences in testimony between police officers and civilians.

"We note that Officer Lapointe was the only one afraid his weapon would be taken, was the only one afraid for his safety," said family spokesman Peter Georges-Louis.

The family also said the most important thing to remember about the report is that if everyone involved had taken the time to stop and think, the arrest would not have escalated to the point where bullets were fired.

Given the report, the family's lawyers said they will pursue a wrongful death lawsuit against Const. Lapointe.

Police satisfied with report

Meanwhile Montreal police chief Marc Parent said that, on the whole, the department is satisfied with the coroner's report into the death of Fredy Villanueva.

Speaking to reporters a few hours after the coroner's report was released, Parent said Montreal police had already made several changes to how they interact with the public since the 2008 shooting, and that the force would continue to do so.

Parent said that Judge André Perrault's report had a number of good recommendations that police would analyze, including ones regarding the type of service weapon issued to police officers.

"We will look at this recommendation with all seriousness," said Parent, pointing out that this was the first time any coroner had criticized the choice of police firearms.

Parent acknowledged that mistakes were made in dealing with Const. Lapointe and Const. Pilotte after the shooting, and how they were able to meet with their union representative, repeatedly, and not kept apart from each other.

The police chief said that since the shooting police have taken steps to make sure that all officers involved in an incident involving the death or injury of a civilian are met within 48 hours by an outside force.

The provincial government has already ordered the creation of an independent body to examine incidents of police violence and alleged misconduct.

This group, called a civilian oversight board, is expected to be in place by mid-2014.

In the years since the shooting one of the officers involved, Const. Lapointe, has since joined an elite unit within the Montreal police department and Parent said that would not change.

"There was an investigation and it concluded that Const. Lapointe should be re-integrated into the police force. I'm going to continue to support that decision," said Parent.

Seeking to improve situation

Mayor Denis Coderre said he has been waiting for this report and plans to analyze it further at length.

"Everything that is related to operations, I will leave to [police chief Marc Parent]," said Coderre.

"However we don't wait for a report to do things," said Coderre, pointing out steps have already been taken to improve relations between residents of Montreal North and with city authorities.

"When looking at an area with extraordinary ethnic diversity there have to be \ actions to integrate, to include people," he said.

Citing housing, employment, and other necessities of life, Coderre said more had to be done and would be done to improve life in the neighbourhood, but did not name any specifics.

Brunilda Reyes of the community group Les Fourchettes de L'espoir said after the shooting, it became easier for the community and the police to communicate with each other.

But she also says the coroner's call for more police sensitivity training should not be limited to Montreal North.

“I don't want us to become a ghetto. Montreal North is no poorer than other areas. We don't own poverty and social problems Yes, it's a place with problems but we're not just that,” she said.