Inquest into fatal 2022 police shooting of Sask. man ends with no closure: father

This story contains reference to suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, please see the bottom of this story for places to look for help.

The loved ones of 26-year-old Ryan Booker say they're left disappointed after a six-person jury at an inquest into his death, following a 2022 police shooting, made no recommendations.

On Wednesday, the final day of the three-day coroner's inquest, the jury deemed his death a suicide.

Booker died on Highway 1, near Belle Plaine, Sask. — between Moose Jaw and Regina — after a six-hour standoff with police on July 17, 2022.

At the time, RCMP said they received a report around 1 a.m. about a man who was sitting in his car and making threats toward his partner. The man then drove from a Superstore parking lot in Moose Jaw, where his partner's car had been parked, and pulled over on the highway near Belle Plaine, RCMP said.

A Regina police SWAT team and RCMP critical incident response team were called in, and RCMP said crisis negotiators tried to de-escalate the situation.

Around 7 a.m., the man pointed his gun at officers and did not comply with multiple commands from officers, who fatally shot him, an RCMP news release said.

The coroner's inquest into the death began on Monday. Such inquests are not criminal proceedings and do not result in criminal charges. Juries are asked to determine the facts of the death and make recommendations to help prevent similar incidents in the future.

In this case, the jury did not make any recommendations.

3 days of 'extreme pain' without closure: father

Police who testified at the inquest Wednesday said the situation left them little choice but to use lethal force, painting a picture of a scenario that is sometimes referred to as "suicide by cop."

Const. Jay Sills, a Moose Jaw Police Service officer who was in contact with Booker during the standoff, testified Tuesday that Booker "talked about suicide for a long time," but "he didn't feel like he was capable of doing it himself, so he wanted to get the police to do it for him."

But Booker's father says much of the testimony painted Booker with "a tarnished brush," and the jury never truly got to see his son. 

"My son wasn't the person they made him out to be," said Bary Nosal. He described his only son as a great kid, who had the ability to make people laugh from the time he was three years old.

"I wanted to show the jurors a picture of him, because they've all got a picture of everyone has a picture of a drug addict," he said. "He was a great dad."

Booker had two sons, now ages 5 and 11, and "his greatest pride and joy in this life was being a dad," said his sister, Sydney Booker.

Nosal said he feels the police failed his son, and he's walking away from the inquest after three days of "extreme pain" without  closure.

"Why didn't they phone me the night it happened?" he said. "Because I would have been out there at 4 o'clock and this … wouldn't have happened."

Sydney Booker also said she disagrees with the finding her brother's death was suicide. 

"He was so scared," she said. "He couldn't go through with this himself. He didn't want to die. He just … wanted help."

Sydney says if Booker's partner or his father, who was "five minutes down the road," had been called, it could have changed a lot.

"He wasn't given that opportunity," she said. "He was alone and thought nobody cared for him, and that was not the case at all."

Autopsy report findings 

Dr. Andreea Mistor, who performed the autopsy on Booker two days after the shooting, testified Wednesday that a gunshot wound to the neck and the head was the cause of Booker's death. 

She testified she was informed by the coroner it was "what we call a police-involved shooting."

A toxicology report showed a number of stimulants and hallucinogens in Booker's system, she testified, including cocaine, MDMA (commonly called ecstasy or molly), and THC. Booker also had a consistency of ketosis in his system, which could indicate diabetes or "chronic alcoholism," she testified.

Mistor said there is no way to confirm what impact, if any, the drugs had on how Booker acted the night he was killed.

However, the coroner had informed her of his mental health issues, and due to the circumstances of his death, she chose to have a neuropathologist examine his brain.

"No significant pathologies [were] found," she said. 

Situation left few options: RCMP officer

Const. Tyler Peterson with the RCMP's emergency response team also testified Wednesday.

He said he arrived at the shoulder of Highway 1 just before 5 a.m., where he and his superintendent agreed the best course of action was to box Booker's vehicle in.

"We needed to contain that vehicle and him to that spot," Peterson said. 

He advised another officer to take an "overwatch position" and act as a sniper, to provide extra coverage to officers on scene.

Booker had been considered a threat to police because he was armed, had uttered threats and had the means to travel to other locations, Peterson told the jury. That left police with limited options, he said.

He was asked by lawyers on several occasions why police could not try to find a less-lethal option to separate Booker from his gun. 

He said he considered those options "right from the start," including using tear gas, a stun gun or a police dog.

But given the distance between officers and Booker, there was no safe way to use those options, he testified.

"We have to look at how it is going to happen, how we are going to deliver it … who are we risking," Peterson said. "It could have a drastic risk," and may have had the effect of escalating the situation.

Peterson said officers cannot use a less-lethal weapon when facing a person using a lethal weapon, and told the jury there was nothing police could have done differently in a situation like this.

"If someone is faced with bodily harm, it is a threat," Peterson said. 

If you or someone you know is struggling, here's where to look for help:

• Canada's Suicide Crisis Helpline: Call or text 988.
• Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868. Text 686868. Live chat counselling on the website.
• Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention: Find a 24-hour crisis centre.
• This guide from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health outlines how to talk about suicide with someone you're worried about.