RCMP fully supports Taser-death probes: commissioner

There's no conflict between the RCMP's publicly stated commitment to investigations of the death of Robert Dziekanski after police shot him with a Taser and recently released internal communications about the matter, the force's commissioner said Thursday.

Internal RCMP e-mails obtained by CBC News suggest some in the force's senior ranks, including Commissioner William Elliott, are disdainful of demands for public scrutiny into the case.

Elliott strove to dispel that notion Thursday, releasing a statement asserting the force's commitment to transparency and accountability several hours after the CBC report.

"There is no conflict between the internal communications and the RCMP's commitment to fully support the numerous independent processes underway to ensure that the matter is fully investigated," Elliott said in the statement.

"To suggest that there is something improper about the expression of sympathy and support for all of the individuals involved in this tragic event, including the RCMP's support for our employees, is wrong."

Dziekanski, a Polish immigrant who did not speak English, died after being shot with a Taser stun gun at the Vancouver International Airport last October by RCMP officers called to help deal with the man, who had apparently become agitated after spending 10 hours there. 

RCMP e-mail exchanges obtained by access to information requests describe personal calls the commissioner made to the four officers involved while they were under investigation.

Elliott expresses support for officers

"I have just now placed calls to all four members. I spoke to three of the four," Elliott wrote in an e-mail dated Nov. 15 to Gary Bass, the RCMP deputy commissioner for the Pacific region. "I know this is tough on you and all our folks in E Division. Please be assured of my ongoing support," Elliott wrote.

In the statement released Thursday, Elliott said there was nothing wrong with expressing sympathy and support to the officers involved.

"We remain committed to providing personal support to all of our employees who we rely on to do challenging and important jobs, often under difficult circumstances," he said in the statement.

Before a video showing Dziekanski collapsing after being hit with a Taser was released to the public, RCMP spokesman Staff Sgt. John Ward urged his superiors in B.C. to be as open as possible about what happened.

The strategy adopted, however, was to say as little as possible and provide information to journalists only when they asked specific questions. All answers were to be vetted in Ottawa, including ones described by Elliott as "tough or dirty questions."

News stories considered to be positive — including statements from the company that makes the Taser — were distributed via the RCMP's e-mail system.

Nothing in the e-mails released to CBC News suggests the RCMP would not co-operate fully with the investigations underway, or that there was any attempt at a coverup.

Internal communication called troubling

Robert Holmes, president of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association, said the internal communication is troubling nonetheless.

"Instead of the senior management of the RCMP focusing on what their job is — which is law enforcement — it begins to take on the appearance of trying to manipulate the news so as to come out with a message that suits the RCMP."

Ujjal Dosanjh, the Opposition Liberal public safety critic, said Elliott's obvious disdain for the media is a problem, but the commissioner's private phone calls to the officers could simply have been an expression of sympathy.

In an e-mail written by Bass on Nov. 24, the deputy commissioner indicates that B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell was also "highly complimentary" of the police force despite the fact that the events surrounding Dziekanski's death were still under investigation.

"I just ran into our premier at the airport and we had a great 20-minute discussion on this issue generally.… He was highly complimentary of the force, disappointed over the degree of criticism and wants to support the members involved somehow," Bass wrote.

"He [Campbell] asked me to think about what he could do in this regard.… He supports the continued use of Taser and any other tools which support and protect our members."

Dziekanski's death has led a number of probes into the use of stun guns by police forces, including an inquiry called by the B.C. government, an internal investigation by the RCMP and an investigation by the RCMP public complaints commissioner.