Fatal police shooting justified, says probe

A Calgary police officer was justified in fatally shooting a man three times during a standoff last spring, a provincial investigation has concluded.

Police responded to reports that a man was holding his 19-year-old neighbour hostage in a home in the 500 block of Sabrina Road S.W. early on May 24, 2009.

The male hostage escaped about an hour after police arrived. A few minutes later, Melvin Vanhouwe exited the house, according to a report released Monday by the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT), an agency that investigates police-related incidents that result in death or serious injury.

Vanhouwe refused police requests to show them his hands, instead raising a loaded shotgun and pointing it at an officer. A member of the police tactical team, with 27 years experience, shot the suspect three times. Vanhouwe died at the scene.

Thirteen additional guns with ammunition were later found in Vanhouwe's home.

The medical examiner also determined that Vanhouwe had a blood alcohol level more than four times greater than the legal limit at the time of the shooting.

"The actions of the police officers were justified in all of the circumstances and no criminal charges will flow as a result of the officers' actions in this incident," said ASIRT in a news release on Monday.