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By rdnewsNOW Staff

FEBRUARY 2021 INCIDENT

ASIRT finds Maskwacis RCMP officer’s use of force justified

Sep 19, 2024 | 5:00 PM

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) has concluded that an officer’s use of force in a 2021 arrest encounter in Maskwacis was justified due to the nature of the situation and limited information available in the case.

The incident in question was determined to be a high-risk situation for the responding officers as firearms were believed to be involved, which gave them the right to detain suspects quickly for their own safety, Matthew Bloc, Assistant Executive Director of ASIRT, said in the report.

On the morning of February 1, 2021, a caller informed Maskwacis RCMP that they had received a text from another party who claimed that people in a specific residence possessed firearms and that the police needed to hurry.

The officer under investigation, or subject officer (SO), and one other officer arrived at the reported residence shortly after the call and pulled into the driveway. As they arrived, a car was attempting to leave the driveway.

The driver and front passenger of the car quickly complied with officer orders to turn off the vehicle and put their hands up. These individuals, as well as people in the backseat were then ordered to leave the vehicle and get on the ground, which received mixed compliance.

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The suspect that was the focus of the report had been in the back seat, and the SO reported a lack of full compliance with orders, saying that the suspect had raised and lowered his hands repeatedly and turned his back to the officer so that he could not see whether or not he was reaching for a weapon.

The SO’s next actions were the subject of the investigation, with it being unclear whether he kicked the suspect in the back to force him to the ground, or pushed him with his foot. He then struck the suspect twice with the hand holding his firearm, but the report finds it is unclear whether the suspect was struck with the weapon or the officer’s palm.

ASIRT investigators utilized photographs, police radio communications, and dashboard footage to review the situation, however the actions in question occurred just outside of the dashboard camera frame.

The report indicates the investigation then depended on testimony, and the affected suspect’s account of events did not line up with what was witnessed on the cameras and offered little to the investigation.

The ASIRT report acknowledges that the lack of concrete evidence is a factor of concern, but that based on the SO’s testimony and what evidence was available, the use of force was justified.

Officers reported that they found two prohibited firearms, ammunition, multiple knives, a baton, a conducted energy weapon, brass knuckles, and pepper spray in the backseat.

On October 12, 2021, the affected suspect pled guilty to unauthorized possession of a firearm and received a 365 day jail sentence.

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