Lionbackers.com

An interesting article in which a reporter attempts to answer FAQ:

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columb ... ekans.html

The four officers will take the stand on Monday.

The stupidity in the whole situation, on all sides just astounds me.

The police taser this guy 30 seconds after greeting him.. 30 seconds. That is public record and the RCMP won't dispute that. In those 30 seconds his threat level did not seem to escalate (from what we can see in the video) and if you are familiar with the layout of the airport in that area (Flying twice a month minimum has made me quite familiar with it) you would know that they had "cornered" him into an area where he was no threat whatsoever to the public.

When police feel threatened they should use force. If 4 officers feel threatened by a worn out man who is 5' 7" and wielding a stapler.. maybe they should look into a new line of work, they have the jitters.

As for the victim and his mother.. complete failure in planning the trip.. The mother didn't know the flight number, the terminal or the airport procedures. This man was waiting for her in an area where she would not have been able to meet him (he had never left the secured zone). Add the fact that neither seemed to have the wherewithall to realize that something was wrong and seek assistance.. if I am waiting 30min past my expected pick up I go looking for answers...

Tragic stupidity all around.

Sums it up pretty good I think except that I would have higher expectation of Airport Officials and Law Enforcement. We pay them to make the difficult decisions and it really appears that we got poor value for our money at several points along the way.

One more thing on the subject. Why was Mrs D.s friend so hell bent on getting back to Kamloops for a Sunday service. Are their no churches of his denomination between here and Kamloops. They were told of a Chapel right in the airport. If their was ever a time to pray for Roberts safe arrival it was their and now. I dont think Mrs.D would of left on her own accord. She probably wanted to wait it out having travelled so far and the rendevouz with her son would of been inevitable whether that night or next day. He was coming to Canada for the rest of his life. BB

Ballistic Bob wrote:One more thing on the subject. Why was Mrs D.s friend so hell bent on getting back to Kamloops for a Sunday service. Are their no churches of his denomination between here and Kamloops. They were told of a Chapel right in the airport. If their was ever a time to pray for Roberts safe arrival it was their and now. I dont think Mrs.D would of left on her own accord. She probably wanted to wait it out having travelled so far and the rendevouz with her son would of been inevitable whether that night or next day. He was coming to Canada for the rest of his life. BB

Well said, BB... and a touch of irony there.

Ballistic Bob wrote:Wear orange or wear nothing.

*ahem* I vote the former... please!

According to Const. Gerry Rundel, one of four RCMP officers who confronted Robert Dziekanski, he testified that he feared for his own safety and that when Dziekanski raised his arms and hands, it was not a sign of surrender and instead, it was a sign of defiance and resisting arrest.

Now, if putting your hands up is not the universal sign of surrender, then what is? If he had a white cloth, should he have waved it instead?

It's also a sign of "back the f*** off, motherf***er"...

Again, a lot to have decoded in 30 seconds.

Bottom line

Police Officers - 4
Suspect - 1

Police Officers - armed with Tasers, Guns, Bullet Proof Vests, Batons
Suspect - Stapler

Risk Factors
Police - low
Civilians - low
Suspect - high

And for the record what the hell difference does it make if the mother was in the Airport or had left or whatever. Too many attempts are being made here to place responsibility on the victim. Did he play a part....Yes of course he did but the fact is that while there were ample opportunities to try and help this man, little effort was made to do so and in the end, he paid for it with his life. No matter what else one can say, he didn't do anything that made him deserving of dying.

I tend to support the police in that they have a very tough job and get little enough slack from Joe Public for it but in this instance they went way too far too quickly and they should just fess up to that part. When one officer says he felt "afraid" under oath under those odds and time frame, then it is time to find another line of work. Airport officials did way too little and way too slowly. They should take heat for that too. And for the record, the family should have maybe planned better as well but nobody should have had to die for that.

what pisses me off is the millions we have poured into airport security

For what?

The RCMP looked like they were close to shift change or coffee break

That tool who testified yesterday should be canned

What an idiot

And I have to have insurance to practice?

Some of my opinions on this tragedy ...

Lots of blame could be assigned in this awful event. Not sure what good that would do to solve the problem. There were lots of mistakes, oversights, naivety, culture shock, panic, over-reaction, and bad luck.

But a review of taser policies is in order, IMHO.

................

For a long time, I have been thinking that more research has to be done before tasers can be "safely" applied by our police. Anybody not in top physical health, or any number of other conditions, would seem to be at great risk from a taser hit.
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After this case, it would seem, the use of tasers, and their associated policies, is being reconsidered by some police forces.

http://www2.canada.com/saskatoonstarpho ... 0e63f836c0

"Taser policy reviewed"

http://www.policelink.com/news/articles ... -taser-use

"RCMP to Restrict Taser Use"

From the latest testimony from the second RCMP officer, another inconsistency can be found.

"Hi, how ya doin'?" Bentley said to Dziekanski who was calm as police arrived. The officer didn't realize the man couldn"t understand English.

The security guard who stood in front of the door stated at least three times loudly to the four officers that Robert did not understand English and (incorrectly) said he could only speak Russian.

Each of those cops should have been man enough to handle him alone one on one. Todays cops are a bunch of pansies

Can we stop blaming the victim?... These were trained RCMP officers who weren't very good at what they were trained to do. Are we going back to blaming the rape victim? Enough! Yea, right, its his fault and his mothers fault. Staplers have now become the weapon of choice for Vancouver gangs. Oh my God, he has a stapler.... 4 COMPETENT Rcmp officers could have made this a non issue. There never would have been an inquiry. Robert would have been living and working in Kamloops today if it weren't for incompetence .Show some balls RCMP, and admit you were wrong.

do you think they use tasers on psych wards or at Riverview?

nelson95 wrote:do you think they use tasers on psych wards or at Riverview?

Are staplers accessible there?