A pre-existing medical condition is being cited as the cause for a man’s death following his arrest by Penticton RCMP for stealing two frozen pizzas.
On Thursday, the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. released its report on the incident, which occurred in November 2019.
According to the report, the man was arrested on the morning of Nov. 8 following a complaint of shoplifting from a local supermarket.
During the man’s arrest, though, the IIO said the man fell onto his right side, with x-rays later determining he suffered three broken ribs.
During his arrest, though, the IIO said the officer pulled up to the man and tried talking to him, with the man running away.
In pursuit, the officer took hold of the man’s right arm and swung him around, resulting in the man falling across a curb and onto his right side. Other officers arrived and assisted in handcuffing the suspect.
The arrest was captured on the officer’s dashcam video, which, according to the IIO, showed the officer kneeling on the suspect’s back and buttocks area.
The IIO also said it talked to four civilian witnesses.
The first witness described the man as not resisting arrest, but “trying … to just get up and walk away.”
The second witness described the suspect as not offering much resistance initially, but struggling and fighting back after two more officers arrived.
The third witness said the suspect was “struggling, fighting back and moving, in my opinion, in a fairly aggressive manner” against the first officer.
The fourth witness said the suspect’s arrest seemed relatively unremarkable, with no excessive force applied.
The IIO said the suspect was transported to the police detachment, and that he appeared to be suffering from a mental disorder. He was treated by paramedics for a facial injury before being taken by ambulance to a hospital.
The suspect was detained at the hospital under a Mental Health Act certificate, but left without permission that morning. He was later located and escorted back to the hospital.
The IIO said no force was used in returning him to the hospital.
On Nov. 11, the suspect became short of breath and was given a chest x-ray, which determined he had three broken ribs on his right side with blood pooling between the chest wall and the lungs.
The IIO said the hemothorax (blood pooling) was treated with a chest tube, which was later removed.
However, on Nov. 14, the man again experienced sudden shortness of breath and died.
“The autopsy report lists the cause of death as pulmonary thromboembolism, due to or as a consequence of deep vein thromboses of both lower extremities (blockages of blood vessels in the lungs caused by blood clots migrating from the legs),” said the IIO.
“The report also noted the three broken ribs on the right side, one of which had penetrated the lining of the inside of the chest wall, and a healing bruise on the left side (of the man’s) face.”
In concluding the report, the IIO said the first officer was on reasonable grounds in detaining the man, and was justified and pursuing him to arrest him.
“It appears that the injury he suffered was caused, not by any excessive force in the way (the man) was taken to the ground by the officer, but by his unfortunate landing on the concrete curb between the sidewalk and the roadway,” said the IIO.
“It should be noted that although (the man) may have suffered a serious injury in the course of his arrest, this fact was not apparent to anyone at the time, including the medical personnel who dealt with (the man), both at the RCMP detachment and at the hospital.
“Further, the autopsy report attributes the cause of death to a pre-existing medical condition (blood cots in the legs), rather than to any injury occurring the man’s apprehension.”
To view the report, click here.
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