The Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales (DPCP) announced Monday that after an independent ethics investigation done by Quebec’s independent police watchdog bureau (BEI), no charges will be laid against officers involved in the death of Riley Fairholm.
Fairholm, 17, was shot and killed by Sûreté du Québec (SQ) police officers in the early morning hours of July 25, 2018, in Lac-Brome in the Eastern Townships.
A police ethics commissioner in Quebec ordered an investigation into the fatal shooting of the Lac-Brome teenager on Aug. 15. after the victim’s mother filed a complaint over how both the police intervention and investigation were handled.
READ MORE: Police ethics commissioner orders investigation into 2018 shooting death of Quebec teen
The BEI reported that Fairholm was walking down a main street in Lac-Brome holding an air gun and screaming. After a witness called 911, police officers arrived at the scene and told Fairholm to drop the weapon. According to the BEI’s investigation, Fairholm instead walked toward the police officers when one of them opened fire and killed the 17-year-old.
Tracy Wing, Fairholm’s mother, filed her complaint in December 2018. She then presented a petition calling for police to wear body cameras at the National Assembly in the spring.
READ MORE: Mother of Quebec teen shot by police presents petition for body cameras at National Assembly
“I always felt like the police just acted way too quickly,” she told Global News in August.
Deputy commissioner Hélène Tremblay ordered an ethics investigation into the entire police intervention leading to Fairholm’s death and the actions of the SQ police officers who were on the scene following the incident.
A statement released from the DPCP on Monday said the analysis of the evidence does not reveal the commission of a criminal offence by SQ officers and no criminal charges will be laid against the police involved.
—With files from Global News’ Kalina Laframboise