VPD officers were justified in fatal shooting of man with handgun in East Vancouver apartment, IIO finds

Vancouver police officers who shot and killed a man in a home near Commercial Drive last spring were justified in their use of lethal force, according to B.C.'s police watchdog.

The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. issued its final report on the April 27, 2022, shooting on Monday.

In it, chief civilian director Ronald J. MacDonald notes that the deceased – referred to in the report as the "affected person" or AP – "clearly posed a very significant threat, both to the officers and to any uninvolved civilian unlucky enough to come within range of his firearm."

The report was based on statements from 14 civilian witnesses, 13 witness officers and five Emergency Health Services personnel; as well as dispatch and police records; audio from 911 calls and police radio transmissions; videos and photos from the scene; firearms examinations and autopsy and toxicology reports.

According to the IIO, officers were first called to the home on East Fifth Avenue to provide security for paramedics who were being dispatched.

The person who called 911 reported that his friend, the affected person, was having a seizure. The caller also reported that AP had bitten him and was "running around and trying to leave through the window."

It was these indications of potential violence that prompted the call-taker to ask for police to respond, according to the IIO.

MAN FIRED THROUGH SHOPPING BAG

The first officers who arrived found AP in the caller's ground floor apartment and reported to dispatch that paramedics would "need restraints" to transport him safely, MacDonald's account of events indicates.

"Dispatch was told by the officers that EHS was on scene, but that AP was 'being a little bit difficult,'" MacDonald wrote, adding that civilian witnesses who saw this part of the interaction described police as attempting to de-escalate the situation.

The IIO report indicates that AP had his hand inside a reusable shopping bag, where he was holding "a loaded Glock 10-millimetre pistol."

"Ignoring requests for him to take his hand out of the bag, he raised it in the direction of the officers and fired two shots through the bag," the report reads.

Paramedics had already left the suite and moved to the building's lobby, and the officers "rapidly followed" them after AP opened fire.

"AP then came from the apartment to the front door of the building and fired eight more shots into and across the street," MacDonald writes in his report.

"Fortunately, no one (including civilians who were present nearby) was struck by AP's bullets."

'HE GAVE THE POLICE LITTLE CHOICE'

A two-hour standoff followed, during which time police put themselves in harm's way to evacuate the rest of the units in the apartment building, according to the IIO.

The incident concluded when AP returned to the doorway and fired at officers again.

"Two police officers discharged their firearms at him and he fell back into the apartment," MacDonald writes. "Once they were sure AP no longer posed a threat, officers then moved in to provide first aid, but AP was subsequently declared deceased."

Police determined that AP had fired "at least 15 rounds" during the course of the incident, and several firearms, both legal and illegal, were found in the suite following the incident, according to the report.

The IIO investigates all incidents involving police in B.C. that result in death or serious harm to a member of the public, regardless of whether there is an allegation of wrongdoing on the part of police.

MacDonald concluded that there was no evidence to suggest any officer had committed a crime during their response to the incident.

"While it was appropriate and reasonable for the initial responders to attempt de-escalation by talking with AP and trying to have him co-operate with the paramedics who were trying to help him, he gave police little choice, ultimately, in how to respond to him," MacDonald wrote.

"Further, I note that in the course of the incident, several officers were obliged to place themselves in exposed and dangerous situations to limit the threat to the public from AP," he added. "These officers should be commended for these actions."