Edmonton police officers cleared in fatal shooting in 2021

Alberta’s police watchdog — the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) — says officers will not be charged in a fatal shooting in July 2021.

On July 27, 2021, Edmonton police responded to a report that a man was damaging vehicles parked at a hotel on Gateway Boulevard.

The initial report from EPS stated that officers responded to the scene, and a man was located 10 minutes later about a block away.

Following this, police chased the man, and at one point, officers discharged their firearms, and the man died.

ASIRT was then notified and conducted its own investigation.

Speaking to three civilian witnesses, three paramedics, and four police officers, investigators were able to learn that hotel guests reported seeing the man shooting and slashing the tires of vehicles.

When the officers responded, they yelled at the man in an attempt to de-escalate the situation, but the man fled to a nearby parking lot of a vacant building.

During the pursuit, the man is believed to have pulled a gun from his waistband, at which point officers reportedly yelled “drop the gun,” but he continued to flee, being chased by four officers on foot and three in a police vehicle that was driving parallel to the parking lot on 56 Avenue.

Reports indicate that while running, the man turned and pointed his gun towards the officers, at which point three officers fired their service weapons, hitting and killing the man.

Officers were able to recover the weapon, which was later confirmed to be a Glock Airsoft pistol.

The airsoft gun was later tested by investigators, but was determined that it did not meet the minimum standards for a firearm classification. A box of CO₂ cylinders and a box of ammunition were reportedly later found at the man’s feet in the ambulance; however, investigators were unable to determine where they were prior.

Investigators were also able to find an airsoft pistol magazine and a bottle of Fireball whiskey that had been discarded during the chase. Those items were reportedly found next to a police hat and radio left by one of officers involved in the chase.

An autopsy on the man later confirmed that he had ingested methamphetamine, cocaine, and cannabis sometime before death.

The investigation determined that the officers were acting in the execution of their duties to protect the public and their own lives. Due to this, the use of force was deemed reasonable, and there are no reasonable grounds to believe that an offence was committed.