Police won't face charges in man's death after arrest
Crown says there's no evidence `extensive' injuries were fatal
Seven Vancouver police officers who arrested a Sechelt man 5½ years ago won't face charges because of a lack of evidence that his “extensive” injuries killed him, the B.C. Prosecution Service announced on Wednesday.
A post-mortem revealed Myles Gray's injuries were “likely suffered during his arrest” on Aug. 13, 2015, but a cause of death couldn't be determined, according to a prosecution service emailed statement.
“These (injuries) included bruising to the body and extremities, bruising and cuts to his face, an orbital bone fracture, nose fracture, possible partial dislocated jaw, a minor brain bleed, throat cartilage fracture, rib fracture, and bilateral testicular hemorrhage,” the statement said. “Based on the evidence available, the BCPS is not able to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the officers committed any offence in relation to the incident. As a result, no charges have been approved.”
The prosecution service also said Gray had the substance mitragynine, a recreational plant-derived opioid also known as kratom, in his system. The pathologist who did the post-mortem “could not exclude the possibility that Mr. Gray's death was caused solely by factors unrelated to the use of force by police, specifically, by the ingestion of the mitragynine or by the condition known as `excited delirium.'”
In 2014 the FBI called excited delirium syndrome a serious and potentially deadly medical condition involving psychotic behaviour, elevated temperature and a fight-or-flight response, and the American College of Emergency Physicians called it a valid disease with a risk of sudden death. But it's not recognized by American Medical Association or the American Psychiatric Association, and three medical doctors writing this year in the Washington Post called it “pseudo-science” used to justify police violence.
Health Canada describes kratom, which is illegal here, as a “herbal product that may pose serious health risks,” with side-effects that include seizures and rapid heartbeat.
Gray's mother, Margie Gray, didn't return a request for comment on Wednesday, but in 2017, said her son's injuries were worse “than I could have imagined. It's absolutely horrifying.”
“I don't know what happened … but there was nothing (drugs) in his system,” she said in 2017, citing toxicology tests at the time.
Police were called that day in 2015 after Gray, 33, got into a conflict with a homeowner and Gray sprayed the woman with her garden hose. After a nine-minute struggle with as many as six Vancouver police officers, Gray was unconscious and in leg and hand restraints. Less than 15 minutes later, he suffered a heart attack and was later pronounced dead.
The homeowner described Gray as “agitated and disturbed” and speaking “gibberish” and speculated he was high on drugs or alcohol. The officer who first responded noted the man was agitated and she called for backup.
The Independent Investigations Office of B.C., which was asked to investigate, found “there were reasonable grounds to believe the officers may have committed offences” and forwarded its report to the prosecution service. The arrest took less than 10 minutes, but for 30 minutes before police arrived, Gray had been walking back and forth on the street, yelling “random stuff,” and had removed his shirt and boots, witnesses said.
Gray “approached her (the first lone officer) pointing at her police badge from very close range, so she got back into her police van,” and he tried to open the door and window of the van before going up the steps to the raised backyard and he “shouted `Welcome to the jungle,' flexing his arms.”
The prosecution service statement said Gray was subjected to “several instances of the use of force by one or another VPD member during the 10-minute period,” including pepper spray, restraint, baton hits, neck and head restraint, foot, knee and closed fist strikes, and all officers said he resisted arrest.
“The only eyewitnesses are the seven VPD members who were involved in the arrest. There are no civilian witnesses or video,” the statement said.
“This has been a tough, tragic situation for everyone involved. We respect the decision from Crown
counsel and don't have anything further to add at this point,” said Vancouver police spokesman Sgt. Steve Addison.
Gray's parents filed a wrongful-death suit against the officers, the VPD and the City of Vancouver in 2016.