Watchdog charges RCMP officers in fatal 2018 shooting
For the first time, Alberta’s police watchdog has laid criminal charges against officers in connection with a fatal shooting incident.
The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) has charged two Mounties with criminal negligence causing death for the 2018 fatal shooting of Clayton Crawford near Whitecourt.
ASIRT was instructed to investigate the circumstances surrounding the July 3, 2018, shooting. The night before, police were called to a residence in Valhalla Centre, where unknown gunmen entered the home and shot at the people inside.
Police said a 31-year-old man fled the home in what police have described as a distinctive vehicle. When officers began investigating the case, they sought the man in the vehicle as a witness and possible intended victim.
On July 3, an off-duty officer thought he saw the vehicle at a Chickadee Creek rest stop, west of Whitecourt, and relayed the information to nearby RCMP officers.
“Officers attended the location and found the vehicle parked with what appeared to be one occupant asleep in the reclined driver’s seat,” said ASIRT executive director Susan Hughson. “The officers approached the vehicle and a confrontation occurred, during which the vehicle was placed into motion.”
One officer shot at the vehicle with their service pistol while another fired a shot from a long-barrel carbine rifle. The truck then rolled across the highway and into a ditch.
Police found Crawford dead inside with multiple gunshot wounds and ASIRT was called into investigate.
Hughson said she reviewed the evidence, including dash cam footage of the shooting, following the investigation and believed there was enough to bring forward charges. She sent the investigation on to the Crown for a second opinion on whether charges could be sought.
She said the footage of the shooting will not be released to the public prior to any court proceedings.
“In this job, you see a lot of terrible things. And you see lives being lost. And that is not something that I personally think belongs on the internet,” said Hughson. “It becomes very difficult for the family to get away from that, once it’s up on the internet and can’t be changed.”
Hughson said ASIRT has charged officers in the past for different offences, including shooting at vehicles, but this is the first time officers have been charged following a fatal officer-involved shooting. The watchdog was launched in January 2008.
Cpl. Randy Stenger and Const. Jessica Brown were each charged with one count of criminal negligence causing death.
Alberta RCMP Deputy Commissioner Curtis Zablocki said both officers were suspended with pay on Friday when he learned of the charges, which he called “serious.”
“They did utilize the protocols, the policies in place for re-entering and returning to the workforce and they did resume duties in Whitecourt in a general-duty capacity,” said Zablocki. “It includes things like evaluations and assessments by our health services team, evaluations and assessments by our training branch around operational functions.”
Zablocki said Brown has approximately four years of policing service under her belt while Stenger has been on the force for 10 years.
“Policing is a difficult job and decisions are made, you know, in split seconds,” said Zablocki. “We don’t get it right every time and unfortunately sometimes it can result in charges.”
RCMP is working to address any staff shortages that may come from the two officers being placed on leave.
The charges come at a time when protests against police brutality and racism have been held around the world in response to the death of George Floyd, after a white officer held his knee on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes during an arrest in Minneapolis.
Derek Chauvin, the officer in that case, has been charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Three other officers involved have been charged with aiding and abetting murder.
Zablocki said Monday policing in Canada is different than in the United States as he believes racism is not systemic throughout
Canadian policing. However, he did acknowledge that racism exists in Canadian society and in its institutions.
“I think we can all acknowledge that racism is prevalent through all aspects of society, through our institutions and in our policing services it can be prevalent in pockets,” said Zablocki. “It’s not tolerated and we continue to work and develop and work with our partners to identify ways to eliminate it.”