Few details shared about fatal police-involved shooting in Kitchener

Waterloo Regional Police encountered a 31-year-old man holding an edged weapon Monday night on Brybeck Crescent

Waterloo Regional Police have divulged few details about a policeinvolved fatal shooting on Monday in Kitchener.

What is known is shortly before 9 p.m., officers were called to Brybeck Crescent at Karn Street and encountered a 31-year-old man holding an edged weapon, stated Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit, which is now in charge of the incident.

“There was an interaction, and one officer discharged his firearm,” the SIU said.

The man died in hospital. Following Wednesday’s Waterloo Regional Police board meeting, police were questioned about what happened.

The incident was the first fatal shooting by a police officer in the region this year. In 2023, there were two police-involved shootings, but neither resulted in death.

Police Chief Mark Crowell noted all front-line officers carry a conducted energy weapon — more commonly known as a Taser — to active calls and are trained in its use at police college and by the local police service.

“It’s an essential part of modern policing,” Crowell said.

“We’ve seen over the past number of years a reliance upon that as a viable option for de-escalation.”

The SIU did not disclose whether a Taser was discharged prior to Monday’s shooting.

The incident is drawing comparisons to the death of Beau Baker, shot nine years ago on the same street by a police officer.

Baker, 20, was killed in 2015 on Brybeck Crescent, a few hundred metres from where Monday’s shooting took place.

Baker, armed with a small kitchen knife when he was shot by police officer Eric Boynton, had reportedly threatened to stab police officers, paramedics and others. He also said he would kill himself.

The SIU cleared Boynton of any criminal wrongdoing, with an inquest jury ruling Baker died by suicide. The jury made 24 recommendations aimed at preventing deaths in similar circumstances.

“We did receive coroner’s recommendations related to the Baker inquiry last year,” Crowell said.

“In compliance with the request, we have submitted our written recommendation, updates in terms of how we’ve advanced our efforts for de-escalation of all interactions, but also, our request for ongoing support in our efforts for mentalhealth assistance in our practices.”

Waterloo Regional Police also collaborated with the Canadian Mental Health Association Waterloo Wellington in 2018 to form the Integrated Mobile Police and Crisis Team (IMPACT), with staff consisting of addictions and mentalhealth clinicians who respond to live calls with officers. Eleven staff members provide coverage from 8 a.m. to midnight.

A report to the police board stated IMPACT was dispatched 1,174 times in 2023, with mental illness calls being the most frequent. Officers attend to, on average, 10 to 11 calls involving mental illness per day.

Crowell said when a mentalhealth call comes into the communications centre, a mental health professional within IMPACT evaluates the potential response risk to the individuals involved, risk to the public and risk to police.

Crowell said while he couldn’t speak directly about Monday’s shooting due to SIU involvement, he did say the incident call went to the communications centre and officers were dispatched.

Generally, the reason IMPACT workers aren’t dispatched with officers is the level of risk to team members and the public, Crowell said.

“They may be present in some circumstances where we have some more lead time on understanding how there may be de-escalation potential, but that’s an ongoing evaluation where sometimes they’re just not able to respond because of the level of risk to the community that’s presented to us from the initial information,” Crowell said.

The incident on Monday was the first fatal shooting by a police officer in the region this year