Lori Culbert (Vancouver Sun) – B.C. appears to have more in-custody deaths than other Canadian jurisdictions, with 267 people dying in police custody over a 15-year span, a report released Wednesday says.
The data was taken from coroners’ reports in British Columbia from 1992 to 2007, and compiled by Simon Fraser University criminology professor David MacAlister for a report by the B.C. Civil Liberties Association.
The report says the B.C. numbers compare poorly to 113 in-custody deaths from 1992 to 2006 (the years for which data was available) in Ontario, a province with 13 million people.
In-custody deaths have been of particular interest in B.C. after several high-profile police-involved deaths, including those of Robert Dziekanski, Ian Bush, Frank Paul, Kevin St. Arnaud and Paul Boyd.
The report, called Police-Involved Deaths: The Failure of Self-Investigation, offers no evidence to explain why in-custody deaths may be more prevalent in B.C.
However, it notes this province lags behind others “in its tardiness in adopting a civilian-led, civilian-staffed agency to investigate allegations of police wrongdoing.”
The provincial government said in June — after the release of the report from the inquiry looking into Dziekanski’s death — that it would establish, within a year, an independent civilian agency to investigate police-related deaths and serious injuries.
A spokesman for the RCMP, which polices a large portion of B.C., says the federal police agency supports such a body.
“One of the pushes in the [Dziekanski] report is for civilian-led oversight, and we’re fully on board with that,” Sgt. Rob Vermeulen said.
He said the RCMP was still studying the 103-page report, but at first blush was “having some difficulty reconciling its numbers.” Vermeulen said the website for Ontario’s civilian oversight agency, the Special Investigations Unit, shows the number of in-custody deaths in that province from 1992 to 2007 was, in fact, more than four times higher than the figure noted in the B.C. study.
The deaths counted in the B.C. report are those of people who were in the custody of police at the time they died, including those held in police cells.
It found the vast majority (91 per cent) were men; the most common age group was 30 to 39 (30 per cent); coroners’ reports indicated the most common cause of death was accidental (53 per cent), followed by suicide (15 per cent) and homicide (14 per cent).
The data indicated significant fluctuations in the number of in-custody deaths in B.C. There were 24 deaths in 1992 and 11 in 2007. The year with the most deaths was 2004, with 27. A chart in the report indicated that 1995 had the fewest in-custody deaths, but did not provide the exact number.
The report said in-custody death data was available for only four other jurisdictions in Canada in addition to B.C. and Ontario:
- New Brunswick: 23 deaths from 1992-93 to 2006.
- Northwest Territories: eight deaths from 1995 to 2002.
- Saskatchewan: 16 deaths from 2000 to 2006.
- Yukon: eight deaths from 1992 to 2007.
I do not think that the general public are all that clueless. Usually you only hear hysteria from ‘the sky is falling’ crowd whipped up by the media. It may be misplaced, but I think as a whole the public are pretty skeptical of the ‘off with their heads’ group.
There will be however, always that percentage that believe the initial media reports, believe the conspiracy theories, do not delve into any issues, and jump on the first passing bandwagon.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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You have to be circumspect when it comes to the media reports. if the article is correct it notes: “Vermeulen said the website for Ontario’s civilian oversight agency, the Special Investigations Unit, shows the number of in-custody deaths in that province from 1992 to 2007 was, in fact, more than four times higher than the figure noted in the B.C. study.”
At first blush, the figures seem to be skewed. This paints an incorrect picture with respect to the overall conclusions that can be drawn. Do not believe everything the papers print is gospel RMR. They are in the business of selling papers.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Thanks for the tip DT but I am well aware of what the media can do. It’s not what they say but how they say it or keep it out that matters to the editor.
The public is clueless to what the real truth is and for the most part have no real way to verify any of it. But the author of the story known when it off the mark.
It’s a little easier to catch a politician than it is to catch the media sometimes. But there are good reporters as well as there are good police officers and the bad taste for both comes from the bad ones who are lazy.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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I am not sure what you mean by “clear officers to go to the next level”. Are you referring to promotions?
The inquests are standard and the inquiries are not requisite nor normal procedure in every instance. The job of the police is not a nice sanitary 9 to 5 and submit a report on it. Think about it for a minute.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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I agree DT, it’s not the best job sometimes and my heart, like yours, goes out to the ones out there slugging it out, but at the same time I’m not taking sides here, I’m also standing for JUSTICE for that person being abused as well.
If you can just see this maybe you can see we are working for the same thing here.
I’m really just fighting for the common good of all of us, not just for some, while working in the midst of this Hell hole of a pit thats growing globally wider by the day.
I just don’t want to anyone sleeping at the wheel and see Canada go down the tubes like some of the other countries, is that really to much to ask for here?
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Interesting that the investigating agency (Vancouver Police Department) has not been pilloried as the RCMP would have over this issue. The failure in this tragic case is spread over the legal system in that there was epic failure at all levels.
With respect to the in custody deaths, before you discuss blame you have to realize that all of them were subject to a coroners inquest. Although the inquest does not assign blame, all the facts are presented. You might like to inform yourself as to how the system actually works, and here is a site to help you understand: http://www.pssg.gov.bc.ca/coroners/publications/index.htm
You can easily find links to the various inquests by simple query, or by going to this site: http://www.pssg.gov.bc.ca/coroners/schedule/index.htm They also have an archive.
“An inquest is mandatory if the deceased was in the care or control or a police officer or in a police lock-up at the time of their death unless the Chief Coroner exercises the discretion provided under Section 18 of the Coroners Act.”
“Upon conclusion, the facts as determined by the investigation, are released on a report. It sets out the coroner’s findings, including a cause of death and whenever possible, recommendations to prevent future deaths. For a copy of the coroner’s report contact the regional coroner office in your area.”
If you really want to read the facts, as noted above you can request a copy of the proceedings. Its all open to the public.
I am not sure about your statement (”which seemed to have power to cleared all officers from wrong doings including cover ups, but where’s the civilian agency? “) which seems to infer that the inquiry (Braidwood?) cleared officers from wrong doing. The inquiry did not just do that and if you read the report you would realize it was a far reaching and comprehensive inquiry by a respected jurist. Policies, procedures, training and methodology have been changed due to Mr. Braidwood’s inquiry.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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But respectfully, did it go far enough or do we have to wait for the next serious issue and inquiry to clear officers to go to the next level?
Hot debate. What do you think?
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I read this article in the National Post yesterday along with the front page article on Ivan Henry who spent 27 years in prison, accused and convicted with attacking 10 women and he was innocent.
1- B.C. man acquitted after spending 27 years in prison for sex assaults
http://www.nationalpost.com/acquitted+after+spending+years+prison+assaults/3737108/story.html
2- Two reasons for no death penalty;
http://www.nationalpost.com/reasons+death+penalty/3743617/story.html
3- After 27 years in jail, justice for Ivan Henry;
http://www.nationalpost.com/After+years+jail+justice+Ivan+Henry/3737788/story.html#ixzz13mdlCbFE
Here we go again, so what’s wrong with the B.C. Justice System there and accross Canada?
All these In-custody deaths are worse than the serial killer in BC who killed all those Prostitutes on the pig farm and fed them to the swine and no one here knows why?
My questions are;
1- Did investigators investigate any of these In-custody deaths of particular interest in B.C and if so who did the investigations?
2- Was there any evidence present or was it lacking for the crown to lay charges and did someone get fired at all?
3- Were there any changes laid in any of these many In-custody deaths?
The RCMP spokesman says; it supports such a body (to be established within a year, an independent civilian agency to investigate police-related deaths and serious injuries), but nothing yet and all I’m hearing in here about this B.C. public inquiry that seemed to be all bark and no bite because like others in the past it’s missing teeth. which seemed to have power to cleared all officers from wrong doings including cover ups, but where’s the civilian agency?
I bet the RCMP would support such an agency because they might have all their figure prints over this agency, kind of like all the former investigators they have working across Canada in government departments and according to their findings and beliefs, no one else is capable of doing a proper investigation.
But I say; “here’s some rather insignificant Canadian proof that investigators really cannot investigate themselves properly and stay independent and resolve these serious issues either”
Strangely they seem to be present in allot of departments but the evidence to move some of these cases forward seems to be lacking and falling short at times.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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