RCMP cleared after man seriously injured in fall from North Vancouver balcony

B.C.’s civilian police watchdog has cleared police of any wrongdoing in an incident where a man broke his leg falling from a North Vancouver balcony.

North Vancouver RCMP were called to the building on Fromme Road at 27th Street in Lynn Valley on June 20, to reports of a man with a knife.

When police arrived, the suspect was climbing out of a third-floor enclosed balcony through a broken window; he eventually fell and fractured his leg, says the Independent Investigations Office (IIO).

The IIO says it spoke to the suspect, civilian witnesses and officers at the scene. It also reviewed police records, 911 calls and police radio transmissions.

The watchdog concluded that the suspect had entered the building through a ground-floor apartment patio, then made his way through the building banging on doors until he got to the third floor.

A woman who lived in the building heard the banging and opened her door, at which point the suspect entered her home, picked up a knife, and claimed someone had killed his son, the IIO said.

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The woman fled to another apartment.

While the man was climbing onto the balcony, several officers remained outside and tried to convince him to go back inside, while four officers made their way to the third floor, according to the IIO.

The IIO concluded from radio broadcasts and witness accounts that the time between when police arrived and when the man fell was about one minute and 15 seconds, and that when the man fell, police had not yet reached the apartment.

It said the suspect himself is not alleging police harm and claimed to have no recollection of the evening.

As such, the watchdog concluded that there was no evidence that the man sustained injuries due to police action or that officers had committed any offences.