IIO Files Report to Crown Counsel for Consideration of Charges (2020-042)
Case: 2020-042 Incident Date: February 26, 2020 Detachment: Abbotsford Police Department Agency: Municipal Location: West Vancouver Incident Classification: Serious Harm Case Status: Closed - Court DecisionINFORMATION BULLETIN
Independent Investigations Office
For Immediate Release
Surrey, B.C. – The Independent Investigations Office (IIO) of BC has filed a report to the BC Prosecution Service for consideration of charges regarding IIO file 2020-042.
As described in the previous media release, on February 26, 2020 shortly before 2:00 p.m., police attempted to arrest a man on outstanding warrants. The man physically resisted those attempts and fled in his vehicle. He was followed by police from Abbotsford to West Vancouver where he was arrested near the Capilano River Bridge. A police dog was used to assist in the arrest and the man sustained serious dog bite injuries.
Upon completion of the investigation, Chief Civilian Director Ronald J. MacDonald, QC, reviewed the evidence and determined there are reasonable grounds to believe that an Abbotsford Police Department officer may have committed an offence in relation to the use of a police service dog during the arrest. As a result, and pursuant to Section 38.11 of the Police Act, the IIO has forwarded a report to the BC Prosecution Service to consider laying a charge.
In order to approve any charge, the BC Prosecution Service must be satisfied that there is a substantial likelihood of conviction based on the evidence gathered by the IIO, and that prosecution be required 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.
Background
The IIO is the independent civilian oversight agency of the police in British Columbia. It investigates all officer-related incidents that result in serious harm or death, whether or not there is any allegation of wrongdoing.