RCMP Taser Deaths

Police Brutality Escalating

Four members of the RCMP (and an interpreter) went to Gliwice, Poland to try and dig up dirt on Robert Dziekanski, the man Tasered to death at YVR on October 14, 2007.

Talk about adding insult to injury. Four brave Mounties kill an unthreatening, unresisting Mr. Dziekanski, who was actually glad to see them. They Taser him up to four times (they lied about that number, and even the number of officers on the scene). They Taser him even as he convulses, helpless and then unconscious on the floor then, in spite of extensive training in life-saving CPR, not one of them lifts a finger to assist their victim, but instead actually hinder the ambulance crew when it arrives by refusing to remove the handcuffs. Maybe they were afraid that Mr. Dziekanski would rise from the dead and slap their faces. Because he was dead. It was homicide. Then four of them (not the same murderous four, one trusts) travel to Poland to rudely interrogate friends and acquaintances in the hopes of obtaining information they can use to posthumously slander their victim. One of those interrogated (for three hours) called it an 'ordeal', and stated that she doesn't have much respect for the RCMP.

This pre-emptive rush to use deadly force has more in common with gang behavior than responsible police practices. So does the lack of respect for the public the police are supposed to be serving. So does the RCMP Commissioner's immediate show of support for the officers involved, thus prejudicing any already conflicted police investigation into their own conduct. So is the admonishment to the public not to believe its own senses regarding the videotape of the incident, the police have a 'better explanation'. So was the RCMP theft of the witness' camera memory card, and the deliberate lies that followed, and still do.

On Vancouver Island a gang of Mounties swooped into a warehouse and roughly threw five people to the ground, handcuffing them. The crime? A grow-op. The crop? Tomatoes. I guess they were those famous killer tomatoes. Rather than admit their bone-headed blunder, the brave Mounties kept their victims face down for an hour while they further ransacked the place and the victims' vehicles. Apologies? Nope.

Twenty-one Canadians and one Pole have now died as the result of electrocution by police. There have been other extremely questionable shooting deaths by the RCMP, including that of Ian Bush in Houston BC. That one sure looks like murder. Over a beer.

The tendency to use violence, often against innocent citizens (or would-be ones) as a first measure, to lie, to deny, to cover-up, to obfuscate, to consider the citizenry as the enemy, guilty until proved innocent, is causing a crisis of respect and confidence in the RCMP. Never has the force been regarded with less esteem, and rightly so. There also seems to be a reluctance to address the issues internally. A recent recommendation by Complaints Commissioner Paul Kennedy that 'irresponsible' use of the Taser be curtailed was met with a curt 'maybe'. He also established that Taser use increases in proportion to the number of officers attending, proving that Mounties are using violence merely to impress each other. Tough guys. That's a hallmark of gang activity.

A widespread lack of confidence in a body such as the RCMP makes everyone less safe, including themselves. The RCMP needs to re-adopt the philosophy of Sir Robert Peel and to stop acting like members of an occupation army. Or gang. Attempting to dig up dirt on the victim of their own deadly and unnecessary violence will not accomplish that. And when things do go wrong, nothing short of an unbiased independent investigation will suffice.

If the RCMP is not going to serve the public with professionalism and respect, then perhaps we should consider abolition. We're in charge.