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B.C. Government Announces Public Inquiry into Vancouver Airport Taser Death

Posted on: Monday, 19 November 2007, 18:00 CST

By Scott Sutherland, THE CANADIAN PRESS

VICTORIA - B.C. will launch a full public inquiry into the death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver International Airport last month.

B.C. Solicitor General John Les said Monday the inquiry will also look at the policy governing the use of Taser stun guns by police in British Columbia.

The announcement comes after weeks of rising outrage over the Oct. 14 death of Dziekanski, who died after being shot twice with a Taser by RCMP who responded to a call about an agitated man at the airport's international arrivals terminal.

"We've decided it's in the public interest that a public inquiry should be held into the matter at YVR," Les told reporters at the B.C. legislature.

"What we're saying today is we intend to address this in a way that is fully public."

A video of the incident was released last week showing officers using the Taser on Dziekanski less than a minute after confronting him, then piling on top of the screaming, convulsing man to put him in handcuffs.

Premier Gordon Campbell said the inquiry is necessary because the incident is "not something anyone in British Columbia, frankly, ever would have anticipated happening."

The incident is the subject of several investigations by the RCMP, the independent RCMP complaints commission, B.C. coroner and the Vancouver airport authority.

Federal Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day also ordered a review of Taser-use policy a few days after Dziekanski's death.

Les said he's confident the other investigations will be thorough.

"But as we thought about this, it became clear to us that there needs to be a public, integrated process so that we can get answers to these things and examine these things in a fully public way," said Les.

Les said if British Columbia and Canada are to welcome the world to their doorstep for the Winter Olympics in 2010, they need to learn from this tragedy and do better.

He said the government will name the head of the inquiry and draft its formal terms of reference in the near future.

Les said the inquiry commissioner will start with a review of Taser use and then decide the appropriate time to conduct the remainder of the inquiry, taking into account the fact that a homicide investigation is underway and a coroner's inquest is expected to begin in the spring.

The public inquiry will look at the appropriate use of Tasers and the current policy used by B.C. police forces, recommending changes if necessary.

It will conduct a "full and comprehensive review" of the incident that ended in Dziekanski's death, including the actions of the RCMP, Canada Border Services, and airport staff.

Dziekanski had flown from Poland via Frankfurt to come live with his mother, who lives in Kamloops, B.C.

However they never connected at the airport and he grew increasingly upset as he waited for about 10 hours.

Security guards and then RCMP were summoned as Dziekanski began blocking an exit door from the secure part of the international arrivals area and tossed a computer to the ground.

Four Mounties responded. Traveller Paul Pritchard's now infamous video shows Dziekanski surrounded by the officers and hit with the first blast as they exchanged words.

He stumbled, screaming and writhing, to the ground where one officer appeared to kneel on his neck as he was cuffed.

Dziekanski soon stopped moving and Pritchard's video ends shortly after a man in a suit leans over to take his pulse.

The review will also provide recommendations on how procedures for handling foreign passengers coming into British Columbia through the airport can be improved.

"Everyone is shocked and saddened by what happened here at Vancouver airport," Les said. "It clearly was extremely disturbing."

Campbell appeared mindful the airport Taser incident may give Canada and British Columbia a black eye.

"We think it's important for British Columbians and people who are going to visit British Columbia to know what we've learned and what we're going to do differently and how we're going to improve on what was clearly a human tragedy for everyone who was involved in it," he said following a speech.

Source: Canadian Press

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