Canada_ (Commonwealth) _ Myles Gray’s death was ruled a murder by the coroner’s jury during an inquiry, making them one of the first authorities to do so since they beat him to death with several Vancouver police officers over eight years ago.
More than 40 witnesses, including the police officers involved in the struggle, firefighters, paramedics, independent investigators, use-of-force trainers, a toxicologist, and a forensic pathologist, testified about Gray’s death during the course of the investigation. The jury delivered its verdict on Monday.
After six hours of discussion, four of the five jurors voted in favor of the verdict. Myles Gray’s mother, Margie Gray, stated, “I think it is the finest conceivable conclusion for an inquiry.
In August 2015, Gray, 33, passed away in a dark backyard in Burnaby, British Columbia, following a battle with police. His wounds included cracked eye sockets, burst testicles, a damaged voice box, and extensive bruises. His family has long demanded harsher punishment for the cops responsible for his killing, who are still on the force and are not indicted.
Coroner’s inquests in British Columbia do not determine who was legally responsible for a death, but jurors were asked to classify Gray’s death and offer suggestions for averting future tragedies. The homicide conclusion is noteworthy, according to Ian Donaldson, a lawyer for Gray’s family, because the police had always maintained that Gray died of natural causes.
Several officers testified at the inquest that they thought Gray had been in “excited delirium. The Vancouver Police Department was asked to establish the use of body cameras with audio recording capabilities for all patrol officers in the city as one of the jury’s three recommendations, and the department’s de-escalation and crisis containment training was also called for a review in the second suggestion. Jurors specifically urged police to reassess how officers interact with anyone who may be going through a mental health crisis.
