Charges considered against Mountie in Sarah Beckett case
Crown to weigh possible role of attempted traffic stop in fatal crash
VICTORIA — Charges are being considered against a West Shore RCMP officer who tried to stop a pickup truck before a crash that killed West Shore RCMP Const. Sarah Beckett last April.
Beckett, a 32-year-old mother of two, died in the early morning of April 5, 2016, after her police car was struck by a pickup truck at Peatt Road and Goldstream Avenue in Langford.
Kenneth Jacob Fenton, 28, has been charged with impaired driving causing death, dangerous driving causing death, flight from police causing death, driving with blood alcohol over .08 and refusing to provide a blood sample to police.
On Thursday, the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. issued a release saying it has filed a report to Crown counsel for consideration of charges in connection with Beckett’s death.
“Prior to the collision, another RCMP officer (who is the subject of this investigation) attempted to pull over the civilian’s vehicle. The civilian’s vehicle did not stop and collided at the intersection resulting in the death of the RCMP officer,” says the release.
The IIO was notified of the incident immediately but released jurisdiction based on initial information provided to the police watchdog. But police later provided more information that resulted in the IIO starting an investigation, says the release.
The focus of the IIO investigation relates to the actions of the RCMP officer who attempted to stop and pull over the civilian’s vehicle. The IIO’s investigation includes the circumstances surrounding the collision and the subsequent information provided to the RCMP by the officer.
The Chief Civilian Director of the IIO has completed his review of the investigative file and, pursuant to Section 38.11 of The Police Act, has forwarded a report to Crown for consideration of charges. This is required when the director considers that an officer may have committed an offence.
The threshold for referral to Crown is lower for the IIO than for other law enforcement agencies in the province.
The IIO does not make a recommendation on whether charges should be approved. Under the Crown Counsel Act, the Criminal Justice Branch has jurisdiction over the charge assessment and charge approval process.
In approving charges, the Criminal Justice Branch must be satisfied not only that an offence may have been committed, but that the commission of an offence can be proven in court beyond a reasonable doubt. Criminal Justice Branch policy provides that in making this assessment Crown counsel will apply a two-part test:
“There must be a substantial likelihood of conviction based on the evidence gathered by the investigating agency. A prosecution must be required in the public interest.
“Under these circumstances, no public report will be issued by the IIO and no further information will be provided.”