The BC Civil Liberties Association among other groups, including the family of Haida Elder Jimmie Johannesson, have issued 91裸聊视频淐alls to Action91裸聊视频� five months after Johannesson was shot dead by the Surrey RCMP during a wellness check in Whalley on April 8.

Beside his family and the BCCLA, Pivot Legal Society, #Justice for Jared and The Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) are among the coalition.

Johannesson91裸聊视频檚 sister, Ruby Marks, was not available for comment.

She and Laura Holland, founder of Justice for Jared, sent a letter to B.C. Minister of Public Safety Mike Farnworth and federal Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino on Sept. 8 concerning Johannesson91裸聊视频檚 last minutes as well as recommendations intended to prevent such a death from happening again.

91裸聊视频淓lder Jimmie called police that morning out of concern that he was a danger to himself. In response to this Elder91裸聊视频檚 call for help, the Emergency Response Team (whose officers wear military-style uniforms) and armed RCMP Officers were dispatched and surrounded his home,91裸聊视频� their letter reads. 91裸聊视频淭he RCMP91裸聊视频檚 lack of training around mental health, de-escalation and safe disarming techniques then saw them opening fire in his home where Jimmie was shot in the arm, leg, and twice in the heart. What began as a desperate cry for help ended in a senseless tragedy at the hands of the state when Jimmie was pronounced dead at the hospital.91裸聊视频�

Surrey RCMP Const. Sarbjit Sangha, a spokeswoman for the detachment, told the Now-Leader on Thursday that because 91裸聊视频渢his matter is under independent investigation which we need to respect,91裸聊视频� that 91裸聊视频渋t would not be appropriate to comment on the BCCLA/UNBCIC release in advance of the conclusion of the investigation.91裸聊视频�

The letter calls on the two levels of government to eliminate police involvement in wellness checks and 91裸聊视频渞eallocate resources to a peer-led mental health emergency response team trained in de-escalation and professional mental health professions whose practices are rooted in and informed by the community, all while prioritizing crisis support and care for the distressed person or family.91裸聊视频�

Moreover, among other related recommendations, the coalition calls for the end of police checks 91裸聊视频� maintaining that street checks 91裸聊视频渙utside of an investigation91裸聊视频� are discriminatory and violate people91裸聊视频檚 privacy, exposing individuals 91裸聊视频渢o further surveillance and potential criminalization91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频� and for government to establish 91裸聊视频渆xplicit, sanction-backed legal duties91裸聊视频� for police to cooperate with the Surrey-based police watchdog Independent Investigations Office (IIO, and for police and the IIO to 91裸聊视频渟afeguard evidence.91裸聊视频�

The coalitions is also calling on government to 91裸聊视频渞ecruit Black and Indigenous investigators with knowledge of the lived experiences of these racialized communities, for the IIO to appoint an Indigenous Civilian Monitor, or a separate board of Indigenous Civilian Monitors, 91裸聊视频渢o oversee each investigation where an Indigenous person is identified as a victim or affected party in an incident of death, serious harm, or reportable injury,91裸聊视频� to restrict firearm possession to a small percentage 91裸聊视频� ie., less than five per cent91裸聊视频�91裸聊视频� specifically and highly trained officers, and make mandatory a policy for body cameras to be worn by all municipal, provincial and federal police officers at all times when on duty.

91裸聊视频淵ou each have significant influence and legal authorities at your disposal to constrain police and augment civilian oversight mechanisms,91裸聊视频� Marks and Holland told the politicians. 91裸聊视频淲e ask you to use your authority without delay as each day passes where another life is taken, distrust of police organizations grows and communities are left torn and broken by the lack of accountability, community safety and care for its citizens.91裸聊视频�

On the call to eliminate police involvement in wellness checks, asked what happens if police aren91裸聊视频檛 on scene to protect mental health workers if a person produces a weapon, Mara Selanders, staff counsel (community) for the BCCLA, told the Now-Leader on Thursday that 91裸聊视频渢here are people with greater skills at de-escalation than the police currently possess, that are able to de-escalate a situation that might mean that the person who did have the weapon has no reason to use it in the end.

91裸聊视频淪o that91裸聊视频檚 kind of the main focus is looking to greater skills at de-escalation and actually managing the situation,91裸聊视频� Selanders said. 91裸聊视频淥ften the police, whether by their mere presence or by the way they handle a situation, that escalates it to the point that weapons are actually used. That91裸聊视频檚 what we91裸聊视频檝e seen, time and again.

91裸聊视频淲e91裸聊视频檝e seen time and again that the situations often escalate beyond what they ever needed to be in the first place,91裸聊视频� Selanders added, 91裸聊视频渂ecause police do not have those same skills that a lot of front-line healthcare and mental health workers possess.91裸聊视频�

As for the IIO91裸聊视频檚 investigation into the police91裸聊视频檚 role in Johannesson91裸聊视频檚 death, she noted, 91裸聊视频渢he investigation is still open and ongoing. No conclusions on that front.91裸聊视频�

tom.zytaruk@surreynowleader.com
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