Family of man who died in police custody travels to Vancouver for answers
Christopher Amyotte was a man fiercely loved by his family — that’s the message his loved ones want the public to know.
Amyotte, an Indigenous man from Winnipeg, travelled to Vancouver to visit his daughter who was scheduled to start school in September, according to his family.
On Aug. 22, witnesses reported seeing a man in distress after a bear spray attack and he was seen taking off his clothes and pouring himself with milk.
They told CTV News they were trying to tell officers he needed help and instead, they heard six shots fired.
“My family right now, is struggling to understand the reason why Chris' life had to end that day and the way it did,” said Samantha Wilson, a cousin and the family spokesperson, at a press conference Thursday.
The Vancouver Police Department later confirmed a bean bag gun was discharged but would not say how many shots were fired. It said the bean bag gun is meant to be an intermediate weapon designed to be less lethal.
But his family is outraged as Amyotte later died in police custody.
The VPD said he went into medical distress and could not be revived.
“I believe that, given the location of this incident in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, that my cousin, Chris, was seen as just another vulnerable person in a vulnerable part of the city and that no one would care about him if something bad happened to him,” said Wilson.
“Unfortunately, for the Vancouver Police Department, Christopher has a family that loves him very much and we are exploring every possible avenue to seek answers for him and his children.”
Amyotte is a father to seven children and had just turned 42 years old days before his death.
Finger pointing comment leads to backlash
Kim Beaudin, the national vice chief of the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples, said the case is disturbing but not surprising.
He believes the outcome would’ve been different if Amyotte were white.
“There’s so many factors when police deal with Indigenous people: the racism, it’s never ending,” Beaudin said.
Beaudin is not the only Indigenous advocate to take police to task.
The Union of B.C Indian Chiefs is calling for a public inquest and is demanding immediate police reform within the Vancouver Police Department.
In response, Tom Stamatakis, the president of the Canadian Police Association tweeted: “UBCIC should focus on solutions not just repeatedly pointing finger at everyone but own organization. What proactive steps have they taken to support their community with services & opportunities to avoid interactions with police & crim justice system?”
The backlash was swift; many calling the comment racist.
Stamatakis told CTV News his comment was being misunderstood.
“My point is let's focus on how we can respond collectively to prevent these crises from occurring in the first place. And I think that that's the approach that we should all be striving for, not one where it's about blaming one group or another and suggesting that the police are somehow responsible for you know, what's a broader societal challenge,” he said.
He said police should not be solely blamed for systemic issues such as racism, mental health, homelessness poverty and substance abuse.
“They do stick up for their own. There is a blue wall, right? And that blue wall is very solid. Very little accountability in terms of the public,” said Beaudin. “He should delete that tweet and resign.”
Calls for inquest, policy changes
Amyotte’s family is calling for a public inquiry.
They would also like to see the VPD make some policy changes to how officers treat Indigenous people living in the Downtown Eastside and address systemic bias against Indigenous people.
“Anger is an emotion that quickly came and left just like Chris,” said Wilson.
The VPD did not respond to request for comment on the calls to action.
Stamatakis said many are blaming officers for Amyotte’s death and drawing to conclusions when the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. hasn’t finished its investigation.
“Once the investigation is complete, then we can draw conclusions from those findings and make decisions about what did happen and what needs to happen in the future to prevent those kinds of incidents from happening. Again, what's happening now is just people speculating or saying whatever they want. It's being recorded as though it's factual,” he said.
In regards to an inquiry, the ministry of the solicitor general and public safety the IIO is mandated to investigate all police-related incidents and it is unable to comment whether there will be a public inquest.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs forward William Nylander sits out 3rd straight game to open the playoffs
Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander sat out his third straight game to open the playoffs Wednesday night because of an undisclosed injury.
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.