Black group plays role in police review

By Gerald V. Paul

The Black Action Defence Committee (BADC) was for the first time was involved in an inquest alongside the top brass of the Police Services Board, as jurors urged the province of Ontario to consider a policy preventing police officers from using their weapons in similar circumstance as that of Duane Christian.

Christian, 15, was shot by police on June 20, 2006, while driving a stolen van.

“I think this is a major win. The fact that the jury has come out and recommended that the policy should be studied and should be considered province-wide is a major step forward,” prominent BADC lawyer Kike Roach told The Camera on Monday.

The officer who shot Christian, Const. Steve Darnley, testified he had no other choice because the teen was trying to run over his partner.

And while the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) cleared the police of wrongdoing , Christian’s family allege their investigation was incompetent and has filed a $2 million lawsuit.

According to Roach, at the time of the shooting, police were not allowed to shoot drivers unless there was “an immediate threat of death or grievous bodily harm to an officer or to a member of the public.”

In 2008, the words “by means other than the vehicle” were added to the policy, prohibiting officers from shooting drivers to disable a vehicle.

At the inquest, the jury recommended:

• The Toronto Police Service should create and implement an on-going outreach programme that collaborates with youth in priority neighbourhoods. Through the school boards, along with community programmes, members of the police force can work directly with and develop positive ways for youth to respect and empathize with the police and other members of the community.

• Use of Force experts from Toronto Police Services and the Ontario Police College should conduct a review of Toronto police service policy and procedure manual, relating to use of force, section 15-01.

• Toronto Police officers should be given further education about the reasons for the amended policy 15-01 restricting the discharging of firearms at vehicles and at operators or occupants of vehicles.

• A subsection be added to section 14.5 of regulation 926 to require that an officer file the required use of force report before the officer completes the shift during which the force was applied, unless there were exceptional circumstances, in which case the report should be filed as soon as possible.