'People want answers': with teen shooter dead, where will answers come from in killings of two Edmonton police officers?

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Edmonton homicide detectives are currently among those probing the killings of their colleagues.

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By all accounts, it was an ambush: the two Edmonton police officers who emerged onto the second floor landing of the apartment building that night didn’t have a chance to even fire their weapons before falling in a volley of gunfire.

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But the full story of what happened to put Constables Brett Ryan and Travis Jordan in that position — and how similar killings might be avoided in the future — likely remains years away.

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  1. An Edmonton Police Service officer salutes as a procession arrives with the bodies of Const. Travis Jordan and Const. Brett Ryan at the Serenity Funeral Home in Edmonton on Tuesday, March 21, 2023.

    Two fallen Edmonton police officers honoured in procession

  2. Edmonton Police Service recruits march to the Serenity Funeral Home as they wait for a procession carrying the bodies of Const. Travis Jordan and Const. Brett Ryan to arrive, in Edmonton Tuesday March 21, 2023.

    Photos: Processional for fallen Edmonton police officers

  3. Darlene Blyan looks at the six bullet holes visible in the doorway of her apartment following the shooting deaths of Const. Travis Jordan and Const. Brett Ryan, in Edmonton Monday March 20, 2023. Blyan lives across the hall from the apartment where the two officers responded to a family violence call.

    Neighbour describes night Edmonton police officers were killed, has six bullet holes in doorway

  4. Edmonton Police Service Deputy Chief Devin Laforce gives an update on the investigation following the shooting deaths of Const. Travis Jordan and Const. Brett Ryan, during a press conference in Edmonton, Friday March 17, 2023.

    lain Edmonton police officers didn’t know teen shooter had a gun; deceased suspect involved in previous mental health call: police

Ryan and Jordan were killed while responding to a family dispute inside the Baywood Park apartments early Thursday morning. The two constables — both in their 30s, both with young families — were repeatedly shot by a 16-year-old gunman who then turned the gun on himself.

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With the shooter dead, the path toward establishing what happened and who — if anyone — will be held accountable remains unclear.

“The person is deceased, so they’re not going to come before the courts,” said Micki Ruth, a former Edmonton police commission chair and retired Ontario police officer. “But yes, there should be a full look (into what happened). People want answers. The police want answers.”

ASIRT, homicide investigations

Some of those answers could come from the two investigations already under way.

Edmonton homicide detectives are currently among those probing the killings of their colleagues.

While the suspect is dead, that investigation might identify surviving parties who could face criminal charges. That’s what happened following the 2005 Mayerthorpe tragedy, in which four RCMP members were murdered by James Roszko, who then killed himself in a quonset hut on his farm.

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Shawn Hennessey and Dennis Cheeseman were eventually found to have given a rifle and a ride to Roszko hours before the shooting. They were charged with first-degree murder, but were permitted to plead guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter and given 15- and 12-year prison sentences, respectively. 

Alberta’s police watchdog, the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team, is also probing what happened at Baywood Park. The agency, made up of current and former police officers, has been tasked with looking into the circumstances of the teenager’s death because he died in the presence of police officers.

Beyond that, it remains to be seen whether Ryan and Jordan’s killings will receive additional scrutiny.

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Fatality inquiries

The last Edmonton police officer killed in the line of duty prior to Thursday was Const. Daniel Woodall, who was shot to death by Norman Raddatz, a known anti-Semite who also killed himself.

Woodall’s death was subject to a fatality inquiry, a process in which a provincial court judge attempts to clarify what happened and identify steps that could prevent similar deaths.

While Alberta’s Fatality Inquiries Act requires that certain deaths undergo an inquiry — including children who die in care and people who die in the custody of law enforcement — the deaths of police officers are not automatically included.

The decision to hold an inquiry into Ryan and Jordan’s deaths will be up to the Fatality Review Board, which will recommend to Justice Minister Tyler Shandro whether an inquiry is warranted (Shandro’s press secretary did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday).

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Edmonton Police Const. Travis Jordan, left, and Const. Brett Ryan are seen in a composite image made from two undated handout photos. Jordan, 35, an 8 1/2-year veteran with the Edmonton force, and Ryan, 30, who had been with the service for 5 1/2 years, were shot and killed responding to a domestic violence call on Thursday, March 16, 2023.
Edmonton Police Const. Travis Jordan, left, and Const. Brett Ryan are seen in a composite image made from two undated handout photos. Jordan, 35, an 8 1/2-year veteran with the Edmonton force, and Ryan, 30, who had been with the service for 5 1/2 years, were shot and killed responding to a domestic violence call on Thursday, March 16, 2023. The Canadian Press

Even if a fatality inquiry does go forward, the mandate is limited.

Patrick Baillie, a Calgary lawyer and psychologist, said a fatality inquiry’s purpose is not to find wrongdoing.

“The fundamental issue is they’re not there to lay blame,” Baillie said. “And so rather than looking at ‘was there a failing in the system,’ it is looking at ‘are there additional improvements that can be (made) to a system?’”

Baillie said that process can leave participants who expect to have “their day in court” frustrated. There are also major delays, as fatality inquiries cannot even begin until all criminal matters — including appeals — have been completed.

Recommendations from Woodall’s fatality inquiry were released last April — six years and 10 months after his death.

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Unanswered questions

For Baillie, a key question in the Edmonton case is what information Ryan and Jordan had when they arrived at the apartment.

EPS officials said at a press conference Friday the officers were responding to a call from the boy’s 55-year-old mother, who said she was having trouble with her son. They were given no indication there was a firearm on scene, police said, and as of Friday, there was no reason to believe either the mother or the boy’s 73-year-old father knew about the gun.

The mother was wounded in a struggle to disarm her son and at last report remained unresponsive in hospital.

There are also questions about the youth’s mental health. Police disclosed he had previously been involved in a mental health call, but provided no additional details. Alberta Health Services declined to comment.

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There are further questions around whether the killings have any connection to an unsolved shooting at a Pizza Hut across the street from Baywood Park that seriously wounded an employee four days prior. Police said Friday they are awaiting more information before commenting.

Baillie said deaths of police officers are rarely subject broad public inquiries with powers beyond those of a fatality inquiry, and so far he sees no need for one in this case.

However, he said additional information might point to systemic failings. For example, he said youth mental health resources are “incredibly stretched,” and that questions could arise about what care if any was sought for the youth prior to the violence.

Ruth, for her part, said it is important to explore whether changes to systems and policies might have led to a different outcome.

“Could there be something that we should be doing, should have done, etc.? You always ask those questions,” she said. “But sometimes, there simply isn’t. (Policing is) a dangerous occupation … a call comes in one way, and you get there and you find out it’s something very different.”

Public funerals for Jordan and Ryan will be held at Rogers Place in Downtown Edmonton on Monday, March 27.

jwakefield@postmedia.com

twitter.com/jonnywakefield

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