Several patterns have emerged after the last few Vancouver police witnesses testified at a coroner害羞草研究所檚 inquest into the death of Myles Gray in August 2015.
The 14 officers who have testified so far have used the same language to describe Gray害羞草研究所檚 behaviour as police struggled to restrain him, and many told the inquest they were so focused on their own actions, they don害羞草研究所檛 have clear and complete recollections of what others were doing to restrain the 33-year-old.
Gray died shortly after a beating by several officers that left him with injuries including a fractured eye socket, a crushed voice box and ruptured testicles.
At least five officers testified they followed a direction from their police union not to make handwritten notes in the hours after Gray害羞草研究所檚 death.
All of them told the inquest they couldn害羞草研究所檛 recall who the union害羞草研究所檚 directive came from, although Det. Const. Nick Thompson testified last week that it was passed to him by a superior officer while he was still at the scene where Gray died.
Const. Tiffany Tan testified on Monday that she has been in numerous 害羞草研究所渄ynamic, abnormal害羞草研究所� situations working as an officer in the years since Gray害羞草研究所檚 death, and she has never been told not to make handwritten notes at any other time.
Const. Joshua Wong testified last week that a senior officer acting as a union representative told him not to make notes, a request he thought was 害羞草研究所渧ery odd.害羞草研究所�
Const. Derek Cain and Det. Const. Beau Spencer also told the inquest that a police union representative told each of the officers not to make handwritten notes.
Const. Chris Bowater testified he did make handwritten notes at the time. He said he was assigned the responsibility of writing as much of a report as he could, and he stayed at the scene for about two hours after Gray害羞草研究所檚 death.
Several of the officers said they didn害羞草研究所檛 speak with each other about the particulars of the struggle with Gray in the hours after his death, while two others told the inquest there was some kind of peer-support discussion that evening.
Asked whether he debriefed with any of the other officers involved, Spencer testified Friday that he was 害羞草研究所渧ery familiar that we害羞草研究所檙e not able to speak about specific circumstances, and each individual害羞草研究所檚 recollection of the event.害羞草研究所�
When the officers arrived at police headquarters, 害羞草研究所渢here was actually very little talking, if any, about what each person had done,害羞草研究所� Spencer told the inquest.
A lawyer for Gray害羞草研究所檚 family, Ian Donaldson, also asked Wong last week whether he had spoken to any of the officers present that day by the time he uploaded his statement to the police database some time in early 2016.
Not in relation to the events that day, Wong said.
However, Const. John Gravengard testified Monday that he and other officers he remembers seeing at the scene of Gray害羞草研究所檚 death had talked about what they experienced and how they felt as they gathered at police headquarters.
Although most of the officers testified that they didn害羞草研究所檛 speak to each other much, if at all, several of them have used the same terms to describe Gray害羞草研究所檚 behaviour.
They said he displayed 害羞草研究所渟uperhuman害羞草研究所� strength and appeared to be in an 害羞草研究所渁nimalistic害羞草研究所� state, sweating heavily and growling or yelling in an unintelligible way.
Spencer said Gray began to 害羞草研究所渂uck害羞草研究所� the officer off him 害羞草研究所渓ike at a rodeo with a horse.害羞草研究所�
Wong also told the inquest Gray was bucking like a horse as several officers struggled to pin him to the ground and handcuff him.
Two officers, Wong and Cain, also described Gray害羞草研究所檚 strength, saying he tossed them like a 害羞草研究所渄oll,害羞草研究所� despite the fact he wasn害羞草研究所檛 standing up at the time.
By the time Gray was handcuffed, most officers told the inquest they didn害羞草研究所檛 notice any signs of injury besides redness in his face and possible body bruising.
However, Spencer testified that Gray害羞草研究所檚 face had become progressively more swollen throughout the struggle, particularly around his orbital bones.
Gray had been in Vancouver making a delivery to a florists害羞草研究所� supply shop as part of his business on the Sunshine Coast. The initial 911 call was about an agitated man who sprayed a woman with a garden hose, the inquest has heard.
Cain, a former paramedic who said he performed first aid on Gray, testified on Friday that Gray害羞草研究所檚 symptoms suggested he was experiencing a condition called 害羞草研究所渆xcited delirium,害羞草研究所� describing it as a life-threatening medical emergency.
Several other officers, including Spencer, Thompson, and Const. Kory Folkestad, testified using that same term to describe Gray害羞草研究所檚 behaviour.
Earlier in the inquest in Burnaby, B.C., Coroner Larry Marzinzik provided the jury with what he called a 害羞草研究所渃autionary note害羞草研究所� about the term excited delirium.
To his knowledge, Marzinzik said it害羞草研究所檚 not recognized as a cause of death by most pathologists. The jury members should put less weight on the evidence of a lay person on the topic and would be hearing from a medical expert later, he said.
Personnel from the Burnaby fire department, BC Emergency Health Services, the Independent Investigations Office and others are set to testify later this week.
The jury won害羞草研究所檛 be able to make findings of legal responsibility at the inquest but may make recommendations to prevent similar deaths in the future.
害羞草研究所擝renna Owen, The Canadian Press
READ MORE:
