– Files from George Henderson, My Cariboo Now
The Independent Investigations Officer of B.C. (IIO) has cleared police officers in Quesnel of any criminal wrongdoing in connection with an incident that left a suspect with a broken arm.
The IIO says RCMP were attempting to stop a pickup truck driven by a man who was a prohibited driver.
It says they attempted to stop the vehicle at around 5:20 p.m. back on March 10th, 2023 but it fled the scene.
Officers did not pursue as the suspect was seen driving dangerously, including driving on the wrong side of the road and speeding through a school zone.
The IIO says the pickup was eventually seen turning into a Y-shaped cul-de-sac with only two exits.
The report indicates that police then approached in both directions and the suspect then attempted to leave.
One of the police vehicles then “rammed” the pickup on the driver’s side causing it to spin into the snow bank.
A second officer, driving behind the first officer, then approached the vehicle and despite attempting to stop, it slid in the snow into the right side of the pickup.
The IIO says the suspect’s arm was then pinned against his pickup and the first police cruiser.
The IIO says the suspect told them that the first impact came as a surprise and caused him to be thrown out of the pickup and onto the ground.
It says he then reached up with his right hand to pull himself up when there was a second impact. and his arm was pinched between the door and the truck body.
In terms of legal issues, the IIO noted that the actions of the first officer, had the potential to be viewed both as dangerous driving and assault with a weapon (the police vehicle).
It determined however, that the officer’s actions were justified as there was no pedestrian or other vehicle traffic, and therefore no obvious danger to the general public, and that the suspect driver was enclosed in a pickup and not in a small car or on a motorcycle.
As for the second police officer that appeared to cause the injury, the IIO determined that the contact was not intentional and called it “an unfortunate accident.”
The IIO says their investigation was based on statements from the suspect, a paramedic and two witness police officers, as well as from police dispatch, audio recordings of police radio transmissions, data downloads from the police vehicles, and from a collision reconstructionist.
The two officers involved, who were not compelled to submit notes, reports and data, chose not to.
This did not impact the IIO’s investigation, but it says it did limit what charges could be laid against the suspect.
Police forward several driving-related offences to the crown for approval but also charges related to firearms and narcotics, based on items found in a search of the pickup.
The IIO says on August 16, 2023 Crown counsel wrote to RCMP advising that it would not be able to proceed with any of the firearm or drug charges because both ‘subject officers’ had refused to provide any evidence regarding the incident.