CALEB NICKERSON
DANFORD LAKE May 28, 2019
Quebec’s Director of Penal and Criminal Prosecutions (DPCP) announced on May 28 that they would not lay charges against the officer that shot and killed Danford Lake resident Dennis Beaudoin on Dec. 28, 2017.
This comes following a report on the incident by the province’s independent bureau of investigation (BEI), which is tasked with reviewing any cases of death during a police intervention.
The BEI was aided in their investigation by two inspectors from the Montreal Police Department.
On that fateful night, police received their first call from one of Beaudoin’s parents, which indicated that Dennis was intoxicated and threatening to harm them. They received another call from Beaudoin himself several minutes later, who asked officers to meet him at a specific location within the next 20 minutes, failing which, he would act on his threats.
When officers arrived at the scene, they found Beaudoin armed with a bow, which he aimed at their vehicle. They parked about 20 metres away and urged Beaudoin to drop his weapon with their radio, which he refused. The officer in the passenger seat attempted to exit the vehicle and opened his door slightly, at which point Beaudoin shot an arrow in his direction, but it did not reach the target.
The officer closed his door and the cruiser moved to within a metre of Beaudoin, at which point he dropped the bow and grabbed a metal stabilizing rod (used to add weight to the bow) weighing 2.5 lbs.
Both officers exited the vehicle and urged Beaudoin, whom they describe as agitated, to drop the bar. Both officers used their pepper spray repeatedly in an attempt to subdue him, without success.
Beaudoin approached one of the officers and raised the bar over his head in an attempt to hit him, at which point the other officer shot at him three times. It’s unclear how many times Beaudoin was hit, but he was transported to hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
In their report, the DCPC concluded that the officers were protected under section 25 of the Criminal Code, specifically subsection 3, which allows police to use deadly force to protect themselves or others from serious bodily harm.
The DCPC’s report went on to state that officers routinely make difficult decisions in the moment and due to the victim’s refusal to comply with directions and his use of a weapon, the police were justified in shooting Beaudoin.
The DCPC’s report is available on the BEI website.
