Globe: Day to look into Ian Bush case
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Tuesday, June 20, 2006, Globe and Mail, Day to look into Ian Bush case, Gloria Galloway
OTTAWA -- Public Security Minister Stockwell Day says he will ask why it has taken so long to investigate the shooting of a young man in a police station in northern British Columbia -- but not before the investigation has been completed.
It has been nearly eight months since Ian Bush was killed in a scuffle with RCMP Constable Paul Koester while the two were alone in the detachment in Houston, B.C.
"It's a very tragic incident that took place and we want to find out all the reasons for that, and the details," Mr. Day said in response to a reporter's question yesterday.
The investigation "is being done carefully and it's not being rushed and I think it's appropriate that time is being taken. When it's complete we will look at that. And one of the questions I'll ask is, 'Were there ways to expedite it without in fact compromising the detail that's needed in an investigation like this?' "
After seven months, the Bush family has been told nothing by the RCMP about what happened on the night of Oct. 29, 2005, that left the 22-year-old mill worker lying with a bullet in the back of his head.
The RCMP's investigation into the shooting was turned over to the New Westminster police department on May 10. New Westminster Deputy Chief Mike Judd, who is personally working on the case, said three weeks ago that he anticipated it would probably take another couple of weeks before it was finished.
Some have questioned the impartiality of the review because the RCMP is simultaneously looking into the actions of a New Westminster police department officer involved in the death of Kyle Tait, a 16-year-old who was shot while sitting in a stolen SUV.
But Mr. Day is not worried about that situation. "There's a number of oversight mechanisms in place regarding complaints against RCMP or inquests into what takes place in any given situation," he said, "and the fact that they have put this into the New Westminister police so that it's arm's length from the RCMP I believe is appropriate. There are many times where one police body will look into what's being done by another police body."
If the RCMP recommends charges be laid against Constable Koester, the matter would be referred to Crown counsel and it would be several more months before the Bush family finds out what happened that night.
OTTAWA -- Public Security Minister Stockwell Day says he will ask why it has taken so long to investigate the shooting of a young man in a police station in northern British Columbia -- but not before the investigation has been completed.
It has been nearly eight months since Ian Bush was killed in a scuffle with RCMP Constable Paul Koester while the two were alone in the detachment in Houston, B.C.
"It's a very tragic incident that took place and we want to find out all the reasons for that, and the details," Mr. Day said in response to a reporter's question yesterday.
The investigation "is being done carefully and it's not being rushed and I think it's appropriate that time is being taken. When it's complete we will look at that. And one of the questions I'll ask is, 'Were there ways to expedite it without in fact compromising the detail that's needed in an investigation like this?' "
After seven months, the Bush family has been told nothing by the RCMP about what happened on the night of Oct. 29, 2005, that left the 22-year-old mill worker lying with a bullet in the back of his head.
The RCMP's investigation into the shooting was turned over to the New Westminster police department on May 10. New Westminster Deputy Chief Mike Judd, who is personally working on the case, said three weeks ago that he anticipated it would probably take another couple of weeks before it was finished.
Some have questioned the impartiality of the review because the RCMP is simultaneously looking into the actions of a New Westminster police department officer involved in the death of Kyle Tait, a 16-year-old who was shot while sitting in a stolen SUV.
But Mr. Day is not worried about that situation. "There's a number of oversight mechanisms in place regarding complaints against RCMP or inquests into what takes place in any given situation," he said, "and the fact that they have put this into the New Westminister police so that it's arm's length from the RCMP I believe is appropriate. There are many times where one police body will look into what's being done by another police body."
If the RCMP recommends charges be laid against Constable Koester, the matter would be referred to Crown counsel and it would be several more months before the Bush family finds out what happened that night.
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