Commission finds no wrongdoing by police officer who killed Chantel Moore
CBC
The Edmundston police officer who shot and killed Chantel Moore from Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation in British Columbia committed no wrongdoing, according to the New Brunswick Police Commission.
The commission finished its investigation into the June 4, 2020, shooting death of Moore and found there was "insufficient evidence" that Const. Jeremy Son breached the Code of Professional Conduct Regulation, commission chair Marc Léger said in a news release the commission Thursday.
The release says the decision and findings of the investigation have been shared with the complainant and police officer, but the report won't be shared publicly.
The commission doesn't name the complainant, but Moore's killing sparked calls for justice by First Nations communities in New Brunswick and across Canada.
Moore, who had moved to the northwestern New Brunswick city to be near her mother and daughter, was shot by Son during a wellness check at her apartment in Edmundston. Son alleged he was backed into a corner by Moore, who was wielding a knife.
Moore's death led to an investigation by Quebec's police watchdog, the Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes (BEI).
The results of that investigation weren't revealed but were shared with the Public Prosecutions Service of New Brunswick, which in June announced it would not pursue charges against the officer.
A coroner's inquest into Moore's death is scheduled to begin Feb. 22, 2022, at the Edmundston Convention Centre.
Léger said in the commission's news release that the policy and procedural review part of its investigation found issues outside the commission's mandate, adding that the coroner's inquest "may raise those issues as well," and the commission is ready to fully co-operate with the coroner.
Léger said the investigation was the most extensive the commission has conducted and involved experts in forensic identification, use of force, a national expert in the conduct of unbiased oversight investigations, and legal counsel.
The investigation included interviews with more than 20 witnesses and also involved investigators performing a re-enactment of the scene under conditions as similar as possible to those that happened on June 4, 2020.
"The investigation was thorough, and its findings are based on facts provided by evidence," said Léger, in the release.
Not long after Moore was killed, Rodney Levi of of Metepenagiag First Nation was shot and killed by RCMP, and First Nations stepped up their demand for an inquiry into systemic racism in New Brunswick.
Prosecutors in the Levi case opted not to charge the officer, determining that, based on the evidence, the officer acted lawfully.