Vigil held for Surrey, B.C., teen shot dead by police
Mother of 15-year-old who was shot says he was holding an unloaded BB gun at the time
Friends and family of a teen who was fatally shot by police in Surrey, B.C., held a candlelight vigil Thursday night to honour his memory.
B.C.'s police watchdog said it's investigating the RCMP-involved shooting, which occurred after police responded to reports of a person "armed with a firearm" in a schoolyard on Sunday afternoon.
Friends and family have identified the victim as 15-year-old Chase de Balinhard.
On Thursday night, members of the community gathered at the site of the shooting near the intersection of 185th Street and 70th Avenue.
The teen's parents addressed the crowd, with Chase's mother saying her son, who had autism, was holding an unloaded BB gun.
"He made a mistake," his mother told the crowd. "They shot him with a rifle 30 feet away. It shouldn't have happened this way."
Police said the confrontation started blocks away from the shooting site, at Clayton Heights Secondary School.
A CBC News reporter has viewed security camera footage of the shooting. It shows a person walking across a yard, pointing what appears to be a gun at his head.
Police can be heard shouting and asking the person not to harm himself, and at one point, the person points what appears to be a gun in the direction of the police.
The person then moves behind a bush, out of the camera's view, and the footage shows two officers taking cover behind a police car.
What sounds like two gunshots can then be heard in quick succession before several officers rush into the frame toward the person.
The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. (IIO) is investigating. It's called in to examine the role of officers' actions or inactions anytime a police-involved incident results in serious harm or death.
On Tuesday, the IIO confirmed the victim was a youth but did not provide any other details, including what the teen was holding.
The IIO's chief civilian director has said they're going to investigate this shooting in as timely manner as possible, and find out whether police actions were "necessary, reasonable, and proportionate in the circumstances."
Meanwhile, a memorial of flowers, stuffed animals, condolence cards and cans of orange soda continues to grow.
Friend Joey Plantz on Thursday remembered Chase as someone who loved to joke around and watch horror movies.
"He was a really funny person," Plantz said. "He always brought joy."