Canadian police have been killing with impunity since 1873.
Richard Peck will determine if charges should be laid against Mounties who shocked Polish man with taser in 2007
Globe and Mail Update
Published Tuesday, Jun. 29, 2010 7:31PM EDT
The decision not to lay charges against four Mounties in the death of Robert Dziekanski is being reopened – and broadened to include statements that the officers involved in the incident made to RCMP investigators and at the Braidwood inquiry, says the special prosecutor appointed this month.
The next step will be to determine if charges should indeed be laid.
In a report delivered to the B.C. attorney-general on Tuesday, Richard Peck recommends a reconsideration of the June, 2008, decision not to lay criminal charges against the four officers, saying new information has since emerged, including expert video analysis and expert opinions related to the reasonableness of the escalation and de-escalation of force.
Mr. Dziekanski died in October, 2007 after being tasered when he began acting erratically in the international arrivals area of the Vancouver airport. However, the report by Mr. Justice Thomas Braidwood, issued less than two weeks ago, rejected testimony by Mounties that they believed Mr. Dziekanski was intending to attack them.
Mr. Braidwood also criticized “deliberate misrepresentations” the four officers in question made about the incident, saying the statements were made to justify their actions. Several statements the officers made immediately after the incident were contradicted by a video shot by a bystander.
Mr. Peck will examine those statements made to the commission, as well as those made to RCMP investigators, to determine if they violated any provision of the Criminal Code or provincial legislation.
The special prosecutor will examine any evidence used to make the original decision on charges, as well as any evidence taken at the Braidwood inquiry.
Mr. Peck is to conduct any prosecution and any appeal that may result.
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