No charges for WPS officers in 2018 taser death: police watchdog
Posted November 4, 2020 2:05 pm.
WINNIPEG (CITYNEWS) – Winnipeg police officers will not face charges after a confrontation led to a man’s death two years ago, following an investigation by Manitoba’s police watchdog.
The province’s Independent Investigation Unit (IIU) determined officers were not to blame for the death of a 34-year-old man after he was fired upon with a taser.
The IIU investigation – with the assistance of a civilian monitor – found no officer “caused or contributed to the cause of the affected person’s death.”
The incident in question took place on July 28, 2018, in the vicinity of Logan Avenue and Princess Street. After being called to the scene, officers say the man threatened them with a brick. They responded by subduing him with a taser.
According to the IIU report, the man then became unresponsive and was transported to hospital, where he died.
During the investigation, Manitoba’s police watchdog says it interviewed five police officers, two fire paramedic members, a civilian witness and an expert on conducted energy weapons (CEW).
The IIU also reviewed witness officer notes, call history reports, the WPS policy on CEW, various audio recordings, autopsy reports, toxicology reports and video surveillance footage.
