Warning: This story contains details of an attempted suicide.
A Victoria police officer was justified in using her firearm to subdue a man brandishing a knife in Royal Jubilee Hospital’s emergency department in 2021, says a ruling by the province’s civilian-led police watchdog.
The man was shot in the abdomen after a conducted-energy weapon did not stop his advance on two police officers. He underwent surgery and has “significantly recovered,” according to a report by the Independent Investigations Office of B.C.
IIO chief civilian director Ronald J. MacDonald said the VicPD officer’s actions were “necessary and reasonable” to prevent harm to the officers, hospital staff and civilians in the ER. The incident was recorded on surveillance video, and in its investigation the IIO also used statements from six civilian witnesses, two paramedics, police radio transmissions and the man who was shot.
In the early hours of March 15, 2021, two VicPD officers were at Royal Jubilee on an unrelated manner when a security guard informed them a man was in the emergency department with a knife.
The man had been taken to hospital by ambulance, claiming he had ingested plutonium, and a witness had reported seeing him with a knife saying: “I want to kill somebody.”
The man ignored commands by the security officer to drop the knife. The first VicPD officer arrived with a Taser and radioed for assistance. The second officer arrived and drew her firearm as the man continued to ignore the first officer’s orders to drop the knife. The Taser was deployed and the man “flinched,” but it didn’t stop him from advancing on officers, witnesses said.
The second officer — the subject of the IIO probe — then shot the man in the abdomen. The man fell to the floor and police had to “rip” the knife from his hand as he still held it tightly, according to the report.
When the man was later interviewed by IIO investigators, he said that he wanted to die and the incident was a suicide attempt. A witness also told the investigators she heard the man say: “I want assisted suicide.”
“This is an unfortunate example of a situation where both healthcare professionals and police attempted to convince [the man] to drop the knife, but without success,” said MacDonald. “In the end, he deliberately took steps to make those around him believe he was intent on causing grievous bodily harm or death to one or more of them.”
MacDonald said in his report that it would not have been appropriate for officers to approach the man and attempt to physically force him to drop the knife. “It was both necessary and reasonable … for his compliance to be obtained by the use of the [Taser] in the first instance. When [that] failed, and officers were faced with the threat of an armed man approaching them and other civilians, using lethal force was necessary to prevent anyone from being harmed.”
MacDonald said there was significant risk for the officers and to the public if the man escaped. “As a result, this use of force … was justified at law.”
> B.C. Crisis Centre phone line: 1-800-784-2433
