Mountie who shot drunk driver acquitted

THOMPSON, MAN. • A judge says he believes that a northern Manitoba RCMP officer genuinely feared for his life when he repeatedly shot at a drunk driver during an attempted arrest that was full of mistakes.

Chief Justice Chris Martin on Monday acquitted Const. Abram Letkeman, 37, of manslaughter despite a series of poor policing decisions in the lead-up to the 2015 shooting of Steven Campbell, 39, outside Thompson.

“No doubt (Const.) Letkeman bears fault, but except for Mr. Campbell’s driving forward and then leftward, I am satisfied he would not have shot,” Martin said.

Martin also acquitted Letkeman of other shooting-related charges, but did convict him of criminal negligence causing bodily harm in relation to his driving.

The trial heard the officer saw Campbell’s Jeep early on a November morning as the bars in the small community of about 15,000 people were closing. A toxicology report showed Campbell had alcohol in his system and was almost 2 1/2 times over the legal limit to drive. It also showed a small amount of cocaine.

Letkeman testified he suspected the driver was impaired and attempted a traffic stop, but after a few moments the Jeep drove away.

Letkeman testified that he hoped to end the chase by using his police car to bump the back of the Jeep, forcing it to rotate and stop. An expert testified the move was against protocol and training, and was extremely risky.

The Jeep ended up on a trail for all-terrain vehicles, where it lost control and stopped. The trial heard Letkeman’s vehicle then T-boned it.

The officer testified he didn’t wait for backup and walked in front of the Jeep to do a high-risk takedown. He said the Jeep started moving toward him, so he was forced to fire. Officers found 12 bullet casings at the scene and Campbell was hit at least nine times.

There were four passengers in Campbell’s vehicle. His girlfriend, Lori Flett, was shot and, among other injuries, her pelvis was fractured in the collision.

In his decision, the judge said the officer’s driving decisions were dangerous and unwarranted. “Virtually nothing was reasonable from the start and each mistake built on the last.”

The judge said the shooting was tragic but proportionate because the Jeep was moving at the officer.