Prosecutors considering charges against Mountie who struck pedestrians in Revelstoke, B.C.

Shops on a tree-lined street in Revelstoke, B.C., in June 2018. (Shutterstock)

British Columbia's police oversight agency is asking prosecutors to consider criminal charges against a Mountie who struck two pedestrians in a crosswalk in Revelstoke last year.

The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. said Wednesday it is satisfied that the off-duty RCMP officer may have committed an offence in the collision that sent a man and a woman to hospital.

The crash happened around 4:35 p.m. on Nov. 5, 2023, when the unnamed Mountie drove through the intersection of Fourth Street and Campbell Avenue in the city's downtown, striking the victims in a crosswalk.

Both victims were taken to hospital for treatment of their injuries.

The police watchdog, which probes all officer-related incidents that result in serious harm or death in B.C., whether or not there are any allegations of wrongdoing on the part of the police, says medical records show that one of the victims' injuries met the threshold of "serious harm" as defined by the Police Act.

According to the legislation, "serious harm" is an injury that may result in death, disfigurement, or substantial loss of mobility or function of a limb, organ, or the body as a whole.

Jessica Berglund, the chief civilian director of the IIO, reviewed the evidence in the case and "determined that reasonable grounds exist to believe that the officer may have committed an offence in relation to the use of their vehicle," the agency said the statement, announcing the conclusion of its investigation.

It is now up to the B.C. Prosecution Service to decide whether or not to approve charges against the Mountie.

In order to do that, prosecutors must first be satisfied that there is a substantial likelihood of a conviction based on the evidence, and must believe prosecution is in the public interest.

"While the matter is with Crown, the IIO will not be making any additional comment about the facts of this case," the watchdog said.