The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) has concluded its investigation into the January 10, 2022, in-custody death of a man at the St. Paul RCMP detachment, determining that no criminal offenses were committed by the officer involved.
The deceased, identified in the report only as the Affected Person (AP), was arrested early that morning for outstanding warrants after being observed with two other allegedly “trying door handles” in the community. AP cooperated with the arrest and was subjected to a pat-down search, which revealed no contraband. Officers did not handcuff him due to his compliance.
AP was transported to the RCMP detachment, where a secondary search similarly yielded no concerning items. However, during transport, in-car video captured AP retrieving something from his pocked and concealing it in his pants. Legal thresholds required for a strip search were not met, and no such search was conducted.
AP spent the day in a holding cell, where surveillance footage shoed him pacing, sitting, laying on a mat, and having dinner around 6 p.m. A review of the cells video captured the deceased doing something on the floor near the area where drug paraphernalia was found. The last time he was seen moving on the video was approximately at 7 p.m.
A civilian guard conducted routine checks of the cell every 15 minutes but “did not observing anything of concern.” Around 9 p.m., when the guard entered to provide access to legal counsel, AP was found unresponsive. EMS were called and medical care was immediately provided, but he was pronounced dead.
An autopsy and toxicology tests revealed that AP has lethal levels of carfentanil, fentanyl, and methamphetamine in his system, substances identified as the cause of death.
ASIRT’s investigation involved interviews with witnesses, a review of security footage, and analysis of medical evidence. “Police officers and other officials generally owe a duty of care to detainees under their watch,” reads the report. “Where a detainee goes into medical distress while in custody, criminal liability may result where the person in charge failed to exercise reasonable care.”
The Supreme Court of Canada mandates that strip searches require specific legal grounds, which ASIRT determined were absent in this case. The investigation confirmed that the officers’ actions aligned with established protocols, and their response to the emergency was timely and appropriate.
“While untimely and tragic, there are no reasonable grounds to believe that any officers committed an offense,” ASIRT concluded.
Although ASIRT’s investigation is complete, the report acknowledges the possibility of a Fatality Inquiry. Such an inquiry could examine systemic issues or propose policy changes to prevent similar incidents.
