ASIRT: Officer’s actions justified during Ponoka shooting in early 2022

ASIRT reports that multiple witnesses said the suspect was yelling as he approached the building’s entrance. He is said to have stood at the doors, which had been locked by a witness inside.

The man was yelling, witnesses said, and held what appeared to be a handgun.

Police arrived very quickly, with one officer exiting his vehicle holding his carbine rifle.

One witness recalled hearing the officer telling the suspect to, “Drop the gun,” and another said they heard, “Get down.”

The officer himself told investigators he shouted, “Hands, hands, let me see your hands.”

Another witness reported seeing the suspect point the gun at officers.

Multiple witnesses then saw one officer fire repeatedly at the suspect. Surveillance showed the suspect fell to the ground.

Two officers approached and removed a knife from his vicinity, handcuffed the man and then began first aid.

EMS arrived within 10 minutes, and airlifted the man to hospital where he was treated for gunshot wounds. The man survived.

Further investigation determined the would-be handgun was actually a paintball gun, though it looked very much like a handgun with some type of suppressor. Twelve expended cartridges were also found at the scene, these matching the officer’s rifle — plus numerous bullet holes.

The suspect told police later that day he had smoked methamphetamine about two hours before his walk. He felt carrying the paintball gun was his right and that it should’ve been obvious it wasn’t a real gun, the report notes.

ASIRT also notes the man said he was going into the courthouse to hide after hearing someone say to call the police.

Officers ended up shooting him four times after he had reportedly lowered the gun to chest level, then raised it again.

ASIRT concludes that officers are permitted to use as much force as is necessary for execution of their duties.

“Absent additional information, police officers are entitled to assume that items that appear to be guns are real guns,” the report reads.

“While they must always be live to the possibility that an apparent gun is not real, requiring that police officers confirm that a gun is real prior to acting on it would mean that people with real guns would have time to shoot the officers.”

Additionally, the report notes that everyone else who saw the suspect that day also thought the firearm was real.

The officer who shot thought the suspect was going to shoot at him and cause grievous bodily harm or death, so he responded with forced intended to do the same — therefore the officer’s actions are proportionate, the report says, as defined by the Criminal Code.

According to court records, the suspect was West Thomas Aldridge, who was 39 at the time.

Aldridge was sentenced in a Ponoka courtroom on Aug. 4, 2023 to an 18-month suspended sentence and lifetime firearms prohibition.

The terms of his probation are that he must keep the peace and be of good behaviour, appear before the court when required, and among other things, get help for addiction to alcohol and drugs.

The full report from ASIRT can be found here.

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by Josh Hall | @Vancan19

ASIRT: Officer’s actions justified during Ponoka shooting in early 2022

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