HALIFAX: Public hearings probing April 2020’s mass shooting in rural Nova Scotia are putting a spotlight on major missteps by the RCMP that might have lessened the tragedy or averted it altogether.
Two major failures are among the most glaring: the absence of a warning over the public alert system that the killer was on the loose and driving a replica police cruiser and the lack of follow-up on complaints years earlier that he owned illegal guns, made threats and exhibited violent behaviour.
Some of the family members of the 22 killed maintain their loved ones would still be alive if a proper alert went out, instead of officers relying on Twitter to provide public warnings about the events unfolding.
An alert that would have been transmitted to most radios, TVs and cellphones was being drafted when the shooter was killed by police at a gas station north of Halifax at 11:26 a.m. on April 19, 2020, roughly 13 hours after his shooting and arson rampage began in the rural community of Portaqique.
RCMP officers at the inquiry offered the excuse that an alert about the replica cruiser would have put them at risk by creating “a frantic panic,” and would have overwhelmed 911 operators with calls from concerned citizens. Experts at the hearings dispelled the notions.
“As long as alerts are clear, concisely stated and provide direction, I don’t see how panic can be an expected outcome of advising the public of information they need to know,” said Cheryl McNeil, a former civilian member of the Toronto police who’s now a consultant.
The Mass Casualty Commission hearings also revealed police received three complaints between 2001 and 2013 that the gunman had illegal weapons. But the RCMP never sought a search warrant for his home in Halifax, his cottage in Portapique or his other properties.
One of the complaints was from his former neighbour in Portapique, Brenda Forbes, who told RCMP he was abusing his partner and had illegal guns. Next to no notes were taken by RCMP. Forbes and her husband ended up selling their home at a loss and moving because she was afraid of her neighbour. Lawyers for the families of those killed are seeking to have her called as a witness.
One RCMP officer visited the gunman, who owned a denture business in Dartmouth, more than a dozen times at his Portapique residence. The officer, Cst. Greg Wiley, had developed a friendship with the gunman starting around 2008. In an interview after the mass shooting, he said that the RCMP gets “a gazillion” complaints about threats and it’s “not realistic” to pursue all of them.
Since the shooting, RCMP now has the ability to issue public warnings of potential danger over the Alert Ready system. A dozen or so have been issued over the past couple of years. Previously, officers would have had to ask the Emergency Management Office to issue an alert. The Emergency Management Office asked the RCMP a few years ago to assume responsibility to issue alerts on its own using the alert system that’s been in place since 2015, but they rejected the offer.
Besides the missteps, the hearings also have shown heroism on the part of RCMP officers, who arrived on the scene without adequate support and amid inadequate staffing in rural areas.
The Mass Casualty Commission, funded by the federal and provincial governments, was set up to investigate the worst mass shooting in modern Canadian history and come up with recommendations to prevent and respond to similar events.
The public inquiry can’t determine whether individuals are guilty of a criminal offence or whether damages should be awarded.
Families of those killed and survivors are seeking status with two class-action lawsuits filed on their by Truro’s Patterson Law. One is against the gunman’s estate and the other is against the RCMP and the province of Nova Scotia for their alleged mishandling of the events during the shooting and arson rampage and the subsequent investigation.
Costs incurred by the Mass Casualty Commission have climbed over $20 million to date. Ottawa and the province are sharing the cost of the investigation, which is slated to conclude Nov. 1 with a final report. Public hearings are scheduled to continue from the Halifax Convention Centre and other locations through the summer.