An officer who was with Derek Harvey Zenk in the hours before the crash that killed Crystal Taman said Harvey-Zenk looked tired, but said he wasn't concerned about his ability to drive safely home.
Sgt. Sean Black, who was hosting a party in the hours before the crash, testified that he had invited Harvey-Zenk to stay the night, not because he looked intoxicated, but because he looked tired.
Black took the stand at the Taman Inquiry Monday which is looking into why charges of impaired driving causing death were dropped against Harvey-Zenk who left a party with fellow officers, and drove his pickup truck into the back of a convertible that was stopped at a red light on Highway 59 -- killing Crystal Taman.
"There was no concern about his drinking and driving," said Black. "As far as I was concerned I saw no obscure behaviour there."
Const. Ken Azaransky was the only officer to sleep over at Black's that night. He testified he spoke with Harvey-Zenk near the end of the party.
"[I] just mentioned that I was staying the night, and if he was going to as well," he said. "Derek really didn't give a reply to that."
Officers didn't see Harvey-Zenk leave
Both officers testified that Harvey-Zenk left the party without them knowing. Black said he was in the washroom when Harvey-Zenk left and Azaransky testified he was on the couch.
Each insisted they had no concern with Harvey-Zenk leaving. Commission council David Paciocco, who was questioning the officers, suggested there's a rumour circulating other officers were concerned with Harvey-Zenk's ability to drive.
"That Zenk needed to be taken care of but somehow he managed to leave your place. Are you aware of that?" said Paciocco.
"Yes." replied Black. "That's misinformation."
After hearing about the crash Black said he contacted his insurance company because was concerned about how the crash may affect him.
He also requested that a scheduled meeting with the Winnipeg Police Professional Standards Unit be postponed because of the possibility of civil litigation.
"I wanted to come forward with the information but I certainly wanted to cross the t's and dot the i's and look after the interests for my family and my own sake," he said.
Three and a half years have passed since the crash and both officers testified they don't remember or didn't see how much fellow officers had been drinking, including Harvey-Zenk.
Black shared how he spent some time preoccupied with fixing a popcorn maker, which Crystal Taman's husband remarked on after the Monday hearing.
"Fixing a popcorn maker rather than recalling specific events that that killed my wife and my children's mother," said Robert Taman. "I find that somewhat insulting."
