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Too early to say death was suicide

PRINCE GEORGE - The RCMP yesterday distanced itself from an officer's statement that an intoxicated woman committed suicide in a cell at the Prince George detachment.  (Vancouver Province)   PREVIOUS:  Woman took her own life

 

Investigator fired 'without justification'

VANCOUVER - The Organized Crime Agency of BC had "no justification" for firing biker-gang investigator Allen Dalstrom, Port Moody Police Chief Brad Parker has argued in an affidavit filed in support of Dalstrom's lawsuit.  (Vancouver Sun)   PREVIOUS:  Animosity 

 

Tethered teen gets $60,000

VICTORIA - Two Victoria police officers used excessive force against a teen in police cells, an eight-person jury ruled.  In a complicated verdict, the jury awarded a total of $60,000 in compensation for violations of Willow Kinloch's rights when she was detained, handcuffed and tethered in a padded cell.  (Victoria Times Colonist)

 

Fight is probed

VANCOUVER -  The incident happened outside the Roxy nightclub on Granville Street in December 2007. According to information obtained by Global News, the fight involved the sons of a high-ranking Vancouver police officer. Neither man was charged in connection with the incident.  (Vancouver Province)

 

Mountie charged

VANCOUVER - Burnaby RCMP Const. Petina Kostiuk was driving a police cruiser with full emergency equipment activated through the intersection of Kingsway and Royal Oak Avenue on Oct. 31 when her cruiser slammed into a vehicle carrying lifelong friends Albert Haczewski, 27, and Walter Hara, 26.  (Vancouver Province)

 

Database connects all BC police

KELOWNA - Police across BC now have access to a database that allows them to share information in real time.   The system - called PRIME, for Police Records Information Management Environment - links 13 independent police agencies and 110 RCMP detachments. (CP)

 

Mountie ordered to resign

VICTORIA - Const. Trent Richards, who worked at the Shawnigan Lake detachment for four years, breached the trust of the RCMP and the public, a disciplinary board found yesterday at a public hearing into his misconduct.  (Victoria Times Colonist)

 

Woman killed in crash

VANCOUVER - 33-year-old pregnant woman killed Sunday in a collision with an unmarked police car may have been speeding at the time of the crash and was not wearing a seatbelt, police said Wednesday. (Vancouver Province)   PREVIOUS:    Cops have last word in case of he said, she's dead   Pregnant woman in fatal crash not wearing seatbelt: RCMP   Woman dies after colliding with cruiser

 

Crime down 9%

VANCOUVER - The number of crimes committed in the city of Vancouver dropped almost nine per cent from 2006 to 2007, according to Vancouver police statistics.   (Vancouver Province)  

 

Suspect shot

PRINCE GEORGE - A suspect was sent to hospital Sunday suffering gunshot wounds after Prince George Mounties opened fire on him as he bore down on them in an allegedly stolen pickup truck. (Prince George Citizen)

Minister blasts cops

VANCOUVER - Transport Minister Kevin Falcon has slammed the Vancouver police for shutting the Second Narrows bridge for six hours while they helped a suicidal woman.  Falcon, who was among the thousands trapped in the Canada Day traffic jam and eventually turned around, said his staff will review the closure. (Province)  PREVIOUS:   Transportation Minister wants answers   Sea-to-Sky Hwy reopens after closure    VPD: 'We're sorry we had to close the bridge'   Distressed woman

 

Man dies after fight with officer

VANCOUVER - A man who was pepper-sprayed and struck with a baton during a fight with a Mountie has died.   (Vancouver Province)   MORE:  Man dies in hospital   Police probe confrontation   Homicide unit takes over investigation   Officer, man get into fight

 

B&Es fall during pilot project

COQUITLAM - Four types of crimes fell by an average of 33% in the first quarter of this year compared with last year in Coquitlam, as the result of a pilot project targeting prolific offenders, say RCMP.  (Vancouver Sun)   REPORT:  Coquitlam RCMP quarterly report 2008  .pdf

 

RCMP probe former cop

VANCOUVER - A long-serving Vancouver police veteran and a Delta firearms-training company are at the centre of an RCMP investigation into the trafficking of guns, some of which are believed to be ending up in the hands of BC gangs.   (Vancouver Sun)   MORE:  The menace of recycled guns   BC government to stem gang violence

 

Father acquitted, son convicted

VANCOUVER - Firefighter Curtis Mason was acquitted, but his son Grant was convicted on two counts yesterday for their role in a St. Patrick's Day brawl with police, featured in a widely viewed YouTube video.   (Vancouver Province)   PREVIOUS:   Accused admits he was 'wrong'   Cop describes how firefighter's son behaved   Reality at odds with picture being painted

 

Knife-fighting cops

VANCOUVER - The case centred on a knife fight between two married officers in their home in 1994. Both parties - Patrick Reilly, of the Burnaby detachment, and wife Kim Reilly, of the Surrey detachment - sustained knife injuries.  (Surrey Now)

 

Man shot by police

PENTICTON - A Penticton man was shot by police early Saturday morning, but has already been released from hospital and is in police custody, awaiting a court appearance to face assault charges.  Neither of the officers was equipped with a Taser, and pepper spray used on the subject had no effect.  (BC Local News)

 

Police officer acquitted

VANCOUVER - Provincial court Judge Tony Dohm found Vancouver police Const. Trevor Lowe, now 30, was justified in making his arrest of nightclub patron Carlo D'Ambrosio and zapping the man three times with a stun gun before throwing him to the sidewalk outside the Stone Temple nightclub on Granville Street in June 2005.  (Vancouver Sun)

 

Ex-cop sues for damages

VANCOUVER - The 59-year-old North Vancouver man has applied in BC Supreme Court to remain anonymous in proceedings related to the abuse he claims he suffered at the hands of Lorne Hughes, a former VPD constable.  (Vancouver Province)

In-custody death rate is highest

More than half of all RCMP in-custody deaths in Canada over the past five years occurred in BC despite the fact only a third of the force's officers work here, an internal report prepared by the force has found. (Vancouver Sun)  REPORT:  2006 RCMP Report: In-custody Deaths   pdf    Alcohol, drugs main causes of deaths

Toxicology report released

VANCOUVER - RCMP said Emmanuella Cauchon had three times the legal blood alcohol content when her vehicle crashed into that of an on-duty officer on Dec. 30.  (Vancouver Sun)   PREVIOUS:  Woman killed in crash    Pregnant woman in fatal crash not wearing seatbelt: RCMP

     

Police union tries to rein in ambassadors

VANCOUVER - The president of the Vancouver Police Union wants the BC Supreme Court to halt city council's plan to give city business associations about $900,000 to expand a red-coated security staff that now patrols the city centre.   (Vancouver Sun)   MORE:  Police union sues city over use of security guards

Man killed by police ID'd

VANCOUVER - Reuben Simeon Coleman, 21, died after exchanging gunfire with Const. Randy Bell at the Shell service station at Knight Street and East 41st Avenue.  (Vancouver Province)  PREVIOUS:   Cop in shootout was Police Officer of the year   Police shoot man in gas station incident    Man dies in exchange of gunfire with police

 
     

Handcuff shenaigans

VANCOUVER - Police are conducting a review after two UBC campus RCMP officers were photographed allowing a small group of young women to play with their handcuffs and sit in their squad car.  (Vancouver Sun)   PPREVIOUS:   Damned if they do   Ubyssey

Bad judgment

VERNON - A coroner's report says bad judgment led to the drowning death of a Mountie two years ago.  Const. Jean Minguy fell from an RCMP patrol boat while testing the Zodiac inflatable craft in the Okanagan Lake near Vernon, BC, in the summer of 2005.   (CBC)

 
     

Vernon man shot by RCMP

VERNON - A 24-year-old suicidal, mentally ill Vernon man was shot dead by Mounties after he threatened officers with a knife, police said.  The distraught grandmother of victim Christopher Paul Klim said Friday the family is trying to deal with the tragedy and did not want to speak publicly about the death or the police investigation.  (Vancouver Province)  PREVIOUS:  Suicidal man shot to death   Fatal shooting under investigation

Details about man who died

VANCOUVER - Vancouver police say a ruptured balloon was found in the stomach of a young man who died in police custody last week. Police believe it was full of drugs, but are waiting for the results of toxicology tests before they confirm the cause of death of 26-year-old Daniel Serbeh.  (NEWS1130)     PREVIOUS:  Man dies in police holding cell   Police investigate death of man in cell

 
     

Officer resigns on day of hearing

VICTORIA - A police officer who shot and injured a man during a struggle in 2005 spent 2 1/2 years on paid leave, then resigned the day he was supposed to go before a disciplinary hearing. .  (Victoria Times Colonist)

Cop loses pay

KAMLOOPS - An RCMP disciplinary board has fined a Kamloops officer two days' pay after he punched a diabetic man in the head because he thought, incorrectly, that the man was driving drunk.   (Vancouver Sun)

 
     

Cop sues RCMP over sex probe

PRINCE GEORGE - A Kamloops RCMP constable is suing top-ranking members of his own police force, prosecutors and several cabinet ministers for $1 million in damages.   (Vancouver Province)   PREVIOUS:   RCMP's internal probe fizzled   Former BC judge gets 7 years for sex assaults    Ramsey gets 7 years

No charges for cops

VICTORIA - Three Victoria police officers who shot and killed a man after a high-speed chase in February will not face criminal charges for their actions because they were acting in self-defence, Crown prosecutors say.  (Times Colonist)  PREVIOUS:  Police shoot and kill suspect in stolen SUV

 
     

Split-second calls

VANCOUVER- How do you train someone to make a life-or-death decision in a matter of seconds?  (Vancouver Province)   MORE:   When police wield a lethal weapon   Wide array of options intended not to kill

Suspended Mountie to return

PRINCE GEORGE - An RCMP officer who has been accused of buying sex from two teenage prostitutes in Prince George between 1993 and 2001 has been ordered returned to active duty.  (Vancouver Sun)

 
     

Cops haul out Taser

VANCOUVER - Police used or produced a Taser 150 times in the six years between 2002 and 2007, or about once every two weeks, always in violent situations, according to internal police documents.  (Vancouver Province)

VPD Taser use

.pdf Reports:

Taser Use 2002   Taser Use 2003

Taser Use 2004   Taser Use 2005

Taser Use 2006   Taser Use 2007

 
     

New facility aims to fill gap

VANCOUVER - An internally generated Vancouver police department report has found between a third and a half of the service calls it receives are from the mentally ill.   (Sun)

'Go ahead, they won't do anything'

Shelter promised after cops' report

Mentally ill overwhelming police: Report

Police report tells shocking stories

Police becoming de facto mental health workers

Policing and the mentally ill

 
     

Man killed by police was high

VICTORIA - A 37-year-old Victoria man who was shot and killed by Victoria police in February after a high-speed chase was high on marijuana and crack cocaine, a coroner's jury heard yesterday at the start of a four-day inquest.  (Victoria Times Colonist)

Cops lose pay for drunken attacks

VANCOUVER - Two Ridge Meadows RCMP officers have been docked 10 days' pay after they got very drunk and then rode around Maple Ridge assaulting innocent people -- falsely identifying themselves as "PoCo Police" while they did so.  (Vancouver Sun)

 
     

Police attacked

SHAWNIGAN LAKE, BC - Three RCMP officers were injured after an alcohol-fuelled 19th birthday party spiralled out of control in Shawnigan Lake, with youths punching and kicking officers, throwing objects and shouting obscenities.  (Times Colonist)

Accused drug dealer sues police for shooting him

VANCOUVER - An accused drug dealer is suing the Vancouver police department, the City of Vancouver and two officers, claiming excessive force was used when he was shot three times while being arrested last year.   (Vancouver Sun)

 
     

Suspended chief faces hearing

VICTORIA - At least some of the - still unknown - allegations against suspended Victoria police Chief Paul Battershill have been substantiated, but it does not necessarily mean he'll be disciplined.   (Victoria Times Colonist) 

 

Police release documents

Where's the beef against the chief?

Mounties to investigate police chief

Police chief suspended with pay

 
     

BC’s 2 person civil forfeiture unit

VICTORIA - A small provincial government office in Victoria has quietly seized millions of dollars in houses, guns, drugs, vehicles, jewelry and other assets allegedly bought with crime money or used for unlawful purposes.  (Vancouver Sun)   MORE:  Assets seized so far   House sale gave BC its biggest forfeiture yet  

Videotapes tell a different story

DELTA, BC - Videotapes of the Delta police cellblocks indicate two Boundary Bay sisters were "not naked at any time while in police custody," according to a joint news release issued by the girls and the police.  (CanWest)   PREVIOUS:  Sisters say they were jailed half-naked after skinny-dipping

 
     

Shot man had 'bipolar disorder'

VANCOUVER - Friends of talented Vancouver cartoonist Paul Boyd say he was the man shot and killed by Vancouver police last week on Granville Street.   Vancouver police say they shot in self-defence after two officers were injured by Boyd swinging a padlock on a chain at them.  Alcock said that although Boyd suffered from bipolar disorder, he "was not a person who would carry weapons or get into fights."  (Province) 

Deaths spark civil rights complaints

Christopher Tom dies in Tofino olding cell

Steve Qualtier dies after being arrested

When should police shoot?

VPD asks RCMP to review shooting

Police resources could be applied more usefully

Illness drove his maniacal behaviour  

Cops shoot, kill chain-wielding man

Police kill chain-wielding suspect

 
     

Internal police probes worry city residents

VANCOUVER - City of Vancouver residents have less confidence that police will investigate internal complaints fairly than residents of any other BC community with a municipal force, a government survey suggests. (Vancouver Sun)    PREVIOUS:  Give police watchdog more power, report urges

Dispatcher, police faulted in suicide

VANCOUVER - Two police sergeants face disciplinary hearings and a dispatcher employed by E-Comm, the Lower Mainland emergency services communications unit, has been fired for failing to respond in time to save the life of a man who committed suicide.  (Vancouver Sun)   MORE:  Lack of resources mean police are default mental health system

 
     

Elaho Valley protester faces perjury charge

VANCOUVER - An environmentalist who was involved in the Elaho Valley protest six years ago will go on trial today for perjury and obstruction of justice after allegedly laying false charges of aggravated assault against a senior member of the RCMP.  (Vancouver Sun)

RCMP appeals quashing of sex case against member

VANCOUVER - The RCMP is appealing the recent decision to throw out disciplinary charges against a member of the Prince George detachment for having sex with underage prostitutes. (Vancouver Sun)  PREVIOUS:  Justin Harris

 
     

Mountie keeps job

VANCOUVER - A Chilliwack RCMP officer who threw a rock at a transit bus, hung out with a known criminal and ran into seven parked cars while driving drunk in North Vancouver is still on the job.  (Vancouver Sun)

Stolen pickup driver convicted

VERNON - The BC man who slammed a stolen pickup truck into the side of a police cruiser in Vernon two years ago killing an auxiliary Mountie has been found guilty of criminal negligence causing death.    (CBC)

 
     

'He was a great guy and I'm going to miss him'

VANCOUVER - City police officers are struggling to cope with the news that one of their own -- a 16-year veteran detective who helped crack some of the city's most brutal criminal cases -- killed himself at the police building at 312 Main Street shortly before midnight Saturday. (Vancouver Sun)

CREST radio system draws ire of police, mayor

VICTORIA - Victoria's police chief was left alone to secure a man bleeding heavily from an overdose in a Bay Centre washroom yesterday because the region's costly emergency communication system flunked out again.  (Times Colonist)   CREST  Too many Police Chiefs

 
     

Ferguson walks free

VICTORIA - Michael Ferguson is a free man.  Ferguson, the former RCMP constable who shot and killed a prisoner in a Pincher Creek jail cell seven years ago, was granted full parole Thursday, after serving just two months behind bars despite a four-year manslaughter sentence.   (Calgary Herald)

 

Court sends former Mountie to prison

Mountie who shot prisoner not exempt from jail

Mountie's manslaughter appeal rejected

Injusticebusters: Michael Ferguson

 
     

81 cases of misconduct by Mounties

VANCOUVER - More than 80 RCMP officers in BC have been found guilty of misconduct by the Mounties' internal affairs unit since January 2005 for offences ranging from falsifying expense claims to having sex with a prostitute.   (Vancouver Sun) 

RCMP forced to act as warrant couriers

SURREY, BC - Several times a week, Surrey RCMP officers must drive to Burnaby to apply for search warrants after a court ruling last month that routinely faxing applications across the Lower Mainland is unconstitutional. (Vancouver Sun)

 
     

New head of West Van force

WEST VANCOUVER - A 28-year veteran of the Vancouver Police Department is crossing the bridge to become West Vancouver's chief constable.  Supt. Kash Heed was named West Van's new chief yesterday in a "unanimous" decision by the police board.  (Province)

West Van police scandal

West Vancouver police chief leaving

West Van police face misconduct allegations

Watchdog orders probe into officer's charge

Hypocrites need to move on

City police have two messes to drink in

Drinking was ok at cop shop

Chief faces questions about police station parties

Drunk West Van cop to be promoted

Officers accused of drinking on duty

 
     

Ian Bush shooting self-defence

VANCOUVER - The chair of the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP has concluded the officer who shot Ian Bush in an RCMP station in Houston, BC, acted in self-defence, and that the police investigation into the shooting was conducted fairly and without conflict of interest.  (CBC) 

 

Final report into the Shooting death of Ian Bush

Stations should have cameras

Jury makes recommendations

Critiquing shoddy police work out of bounds

RCMP defends killing

Officer not charged in death

 
     

Mountie fined, loses pay for crash

VANCOUVER - A Prince George, BC, RCMP officer was docked nine days pay after he took an unmarked police cruiser to a house party without permission, had some drinks, then hit a parked car on his way home.    (CanWest)

2 Mounties charged following off duty incident

VANCOUVER - Two Coquitlam RCMP officers have been charged with assault and obstruction of a police officer following an off-duty incident at a local restaurant. (CBC)