BC Prosecution Service (BCPS) announced on December 16 that no charges have been approved against the Vancouver Police Department (VPD) officers involved in the arrest of Myles Gray on August 13, 2015, in Burnaby.
According to a media release from BCPS, during the incident, Gray suffered extensive injuries. The release stated that while Gray was being restrained by the VPD officers, he went into cardiac arrest and died. The forensic pathologist who conducted the autopsy could not determine the specific cause of death.
The incident was investigated by the Independent Investigations Office (IIO). Following the investigation, the chief civilian director of the IIO determined there were reasonable grounds to believe the officers may have committed offences and submitted a report to the BCPS, according to the release.
The release stated that in this case, BCPS has concluded the available evidence does not meet its charge assessment standard. The only witnesses to the physical altercation and restraint of Gray by the police were the attending members of the VPD. Based on the evidence available, BCPS is not able to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the officers committed any offence in relation to the incident, the release stated. As a result, no charges have been approved.
A clear statement explaining the decision in more detail can be found here: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/law-crime-and-justice/criminal-justice/prosecution-service/media-statements/2020/20-16-no-charge-clear-statement-myles-gray-death-2015.pdf
According to the media release, in order to maintain confidence in the integrity of the criminal justice system, a clear statement explaining the reasons for not approving charges is made public by BCPS in cases where the IIO has investigated the conduct of police officers and forwarded a report for charge assessment.
According to files from the Coast Reporter newspaper, Gray, a 33-year-old Sechelt businessman, was making deliveries near South East Marine Drive in Vancouver when he became involved in an altercation with several VPD officers who were responding to a call about a man spraying a woman with a garden hose.
The Coast Reporter story states that a statement of background facts, presented as part of a 2017 court petition filed by the IIO against a VPD constable, described as a key witness, outlined a list of the injuries suffered by Gray, including a broken nose, fractured voice box, dislocated jaw, fractures around the eye socket, a broken rib and sternum, hemorrhagic injury of one testicle and bruising of the arms and legs.
The Coast Reporter story stated that a civil suit has been filed by Gray’s parents against City of Vancouver, VPD, and several police officers and is still before the court.
