Calgary police union defends officer's decision to use rifle during shooting after ASIRT findings
ASIRT's response 'shows a lack of understanding about basic police training,' association says
The Calgary police union is defending an officer's decision to use a rifle when he shot and killed a man in a parkade, despite investigators saying there were "reasonable grounds to believe an offence had been committed."
On Friday, the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) announced the findings of its investigation into the July 15, 2016, death of Sanjai Prasad, 41.
ASIRT said the officer, who shot Prasad with a C8 patrol rifle, refused to give a statement and may have contravened Calgary Police Service policy by opening fire with his rifle and not service pistol.
But the Calgary Police Association said in an emailed statement on Saturday that it continues to fully support the officer who shot Prasad.
The police watchdog forwarded its findings to the Alberta Crown's office, but determined not to lay charges as there was no reasonable likelihood of conviction.
"We welcome the decision to clear our member, who will continue to have our support going forward, however, we find it troubling that these basic facts were either ignored or not understood by the very person assigned to investigate police-use-of-force incidents," the union's statement read.
Prasad and three friends were stealing from vehicles and searching for a licence plate for a stolen vehicle in an Inglewood condo building's parkade, when a tenant called 911.
When Prasad saw police approaching, he tried to flee, forcing police to jump out of the way of his speeding SUV. An officer opened fire on the vehicle, hitting Prasad.
ASIRT executive director Susan Hughson said on Friday that the "unexplained decision" to use the rifle could be interpreted as "overly aggressive," and that the 911 caller said no weapons were observed.
"Ms. Hughson's statement that the officer's choice to respond with his rifle 'could be interpreted as an overly aggressive response' shows a lack of understanding about basic police training and tactics," the union's statement read. "The rifle is a much safer option in an unknown-risk situation, such as this, as its accuracy is far higher, and penetration is more predictable than an officer's last resort, which is the pistol."
The officer is still on duty, but is currently under investigation by the Calgary police's professional standards unit.