A Tsuut’ina police officer has been cleared of any wrongdoing by the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) following a crash in Calgary that led to a man’s death.
ASIRT said in a statement Tuesday no charges would be laid and the officer’s actions didn’t contribute to the death.
Keith Morley, 52, was killed on Feb. 18, 2016, when his Toyota Corolla smashed head-on into a stolen black pickup truck travelling the wrong way on northbound 37 Street S.W. at 130 Avenue.
Earlier that day, at about 6:30 a.m., the driver of the truck had passed a group of Tsuut’ina Nation Police Service officers on the First Nation, nearly hitting one of them.
A police pursuit was launched and an officer in a fully marked police vehicle later spotted the truck, then attempted to pull it over, ASIRT said. The truck driver fled the scene at a high rate of speed.
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ASIRT said when it became clear the driver of the truck would not stop, the officer “took several steps to try to de-escalate the situation, including deactivating the police vehicle’s emergency equipment and disengaging” then stopping the pursuit.
The 33-year-old driver of the truck and the two passengers fled on foot.
Derek Brian Grouette, 33, pleaded guilty in October 2016 and was sentenced to six years in prison in connection with the crash.
Janelle Umpherville, 26, pleaded guilty to a string of charges including possession of stolen property in May 2016. After credit for time served, she was sentenced to 18 months probation and 50 hours of community service. A 17-year-old man was also charged.
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