Watchdog clears officers after man shot with beanbags in Vancouver and dies

The civilian director of British Columbia’s police watchdog says she doesn’t believe Vancouver officers committed an offence when they shot a naked man with multiple beanbags and he died. 

Jessica Berglund’s report says police were called in August 2022 when a naked man was seen running on the sidewalk in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside and pouring milk on himself, with witnesses saying the man may have been bear-sprayed. 

Berglund says several civilian witness immediately recognized that the man appeared to be a victim in distress and attempted to talk to him and offer assistance, but officers saw him as a risk to himself and a threat to public safety that needed to be taken down.

The report says when the man did not comply with instructions to get on the ground, he was shot with beanbags in the buttocks and back, then brought to the ground by a group of six officers.

The man then became unresponsive and died from what an autopsy later said was the combined effects of bear spray exposure, drug use, cardiomegaly, obesity, and physical restraint but that the beanbags did not contribute to the death.

Berglund’s report says the police had the option of taking a different approach in trying to defuse the situation, but officers’ decision to choose another method over the other is not criminal and the actions taken would not be expected to cause serious injury or death.

“The officers in this case came to the conclusions and reached the decisions they did as they were confronted by a scene they assessed as requiring an urgent response,” the report says.

“Considering these factors, and on the evidence as a whole, it cannot be said that the officers used force against the (man) that was unnecessary, excessive or unreasonable to an extent that would amount to a criminal assault or manslaughter.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 5, 2025