Winnipeg police fire guns 33 times in 8 years

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/01/2010 (5729 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WINNIPEG – In the last eight years, Winnipeg police officers have fired their guns after tripping on a carpet, during a lecture about new weapons and while returning a gun to its holster.

But the shortlist of almost-comical weapons mishaps belies a more troubling issue: Most of incidents where police fired their guns are listed as “unresolved,” even though some date back seven years.

According to documents obtained through a freedom of information request, Winnipeg police officers have fired their weapons 33 times in the eight years between 2000 and 2008.

Of those 33 incidents, only one third — 11 cases — have been resolved by an internal board of inquiry.

Six of those 11 resulted in police officers being reprimanded. One discharge was ruled accidental.

Police would only release details about the cases that have been settled. Winnipeg police denied access to even basic information such as dates and locations of all incidents that were still under review.

Winnipeg police would not discuss why it takes so long to conduct an internal investigation of each incident. But Dave Brown, a professional firearms instructor at the NorthWest Law Enforcement Academy in Winnipeg, says cases are thoroughly investigated.

“That takes a long time,” said Brown. “You wouldn’t want a case solved overnight.”

The cases that have been resolved include several mishaps:

• In 2003, while executing a firearms warrant, an officer tripped over a floor runner and discharged a round from his gun. A resident of the home where the incident happened filed a complaint with the province’s Law Enforcement Review Agency which issued a report.

  “According to [the officer], the discharge was a highly embarrassing accident,” reads the LERA report. “He was attempting to clear the bathroom by entering the darkened area with his gun drawn and the light on the gun illuminated. He somehow tripped, lost his balance and fired.”
   

• In 2000, an officer fired a warning shot, which is a direct violation of the firearms discharge guidelines. In an effort to save a police service dog who was stabbed in the head with a screwdriver, the officer fired his pistol into the ground to "terminate the suspect’s aggression." The officer received a written reprimand and was required to meet with supervisors for a review of policy and practical application. The dog recovered.
   
• In 2005, an officer was giving a lecture to an outside agency about a new pistol, and when he pulled the trigger a bullet shot into the floor. The review determined the firearm wasn’t stored properly and should have checked beforehand. The officer received a written reprimand.
   
• In 2000, while examining a loaded pistol in a locker room, the gun discharged while an officer returned it to his holster. The bullet struck a cinderblock wall and a locker. There were no injuries, but the officer received a written reprimand.

In four other cases,  police officers were ruled to be not justified in discharging their firearms. Two of these involved improper cleaning procedures and the other two involved negligence.

Coun. Mike Pagtakhan, chair of council’s protection and community services committee, says that this number is neither high nor low, but the outcome all depends on human judgment.

“In those situations where it seems it may be unjustified, there is a proper procedure in dealing with that. There’s going to be situations that are gonna be outside the guidelines and they may be pending…. It’s a judgment call and everyone thinks differently,” Pagtakhan said.