RCMP officer faces possible charges after man shot in head in 2023

B.C.'s Independent Investigations Office (IIO) has concluded its report on a shooting on Vancouver Island two years ago and is asking the B.C. Prosecution Service to consider charges against the police officer involved.

It happened in March 2023 and ended with one man in hospital with serious, life-threatening injuries, after he was shot in the head.

In a statement, the IIO says its chief civilian director, Jessica Berglund, has concluded one of the responding officers may have "committed an offence in relation to the use of a firearm" and has forwarded the report to the B.C. Prosecution Service to make a final decision on whether charges will be pursued.

The man who was shot is also suing two of the officers, alleging they used excessive force when he was in the midst of a "medical crisis."

Incident sparked by skid steer chase in Duncan

The IIO says the incident started the evening of March 28, 2023, when members of the North Cowichan/Duncan RCMP detachment responded to a report of a man operating a skid-steer loader in a residential area of Duncan.

They found him in Evans Park, where the shooting took place.

In his lawsuit, 32-year-old Davin Cochrane says he was driving the skid-steer loader through Duncan when police began pursuing him.

The chase ended in Evans Park, where Cochrane says an RCMP officer shot him multiple times in the head and body, according to a notice of civil claim he filed in the B.C. Supreme Court.

Cochrane's lawsuit alleges the as-yet unidentified officer who shot him was intoxicated at the time of the incident, lacked proper use-of-force training and had a history of problematic firearm use. It also claims a second supervisory officer who responded to the incident, who also hasn't been identified, knew or should have known that his colleague was intoxicated and that their "ability to behave professionally was impaired."

The lawsuit claims negligence by the officers caused or contributed to the shooting, saying they confronted Cochrane in a way that made him fear for his life, failed to de-escalate the situation, and did not use other less-lethal means or warn Cochrane before shooting at him.

"The use of excessive force by [officers] was unlawful battery arising from gross negligence, or malicious and/or willful misconduct," the claim reads.

None of the allegations have been tested in court, and neither of the officers has filed a response to the lawsuit. 

Lawsuit pending

Cochrane, a father of four who says he had turned his life around after a struggle with substance use and a long criminal record, claims he had been in a car accident earlier that day, and the police could see he was visibly "bandaged up."

Cochrane was hospitalized in critical condition and says he sustained psychological, brain and physical injuries, and has a permanent cognitive disability as a result of the incident. His lawsuit also says he has been unable to work or care for himself independently since then.

"The plaintiff's injuries have caused him pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life," the claim reads.

B.C.'s minister of public safety and solicitor general and the attorney general of Canada are also named as defendants in the suit, which claims the RCMP, contracted by the province to police certain communities, were not properly trained and that the two governments are also liable for the alleged wrongdoing.

They filed a joint response in May 2024, in which they deny Cochrane's claims and say he failed to obey police instructions, resisted arrest and obstructed RCMP officers during the incident.

"The apprehension of the plaintiff as well as the means used were reasonable, lawful and executed in good faith," the response reads.

The morning of the incident, Cochrane claims he was in a serious car accident that sent his head into the window of a vehicle and caused him to require hospitalization and knee surgery. 

He was described as "mumbling" by medical staff, and left the hospital "against medical advice" later that afternoon before he could undergo surgery, according to his claim.

Mounties said they tried to get him to stop, but that the loader and police vehicles collided.

Video circulated on social media shows a man driving a skid-steer erratically as police vehicles weave around him, seemingly trying to contain him, or, in some instances, ram him.

Cochrane's lawsuit claims he operated the skid-steer at a very low speed, under 12 kilometres per hour, avoided all pedestrians and non-RCMP vehicles, and drove "in a manner which indicated he did not intend to cause harm to persons and/or property."

His lawsuit says that at the time of the shooting, he "posed no imminent or potential risk of death or grievous bodily harm to any other person."

Cochrane's claim says he is seeking compensation for pain and suffering, medical costs and current and future loss of earnings, as well as punitive damages from the defendants.