'I'm not a monster': Teen suspect in death of Calgary officer takes stand at trial
A Calgary teen charged with first-degree murder in the death of a police officer in a hit and run testified Tuesday he feared for his life when he took off in his vehicle with Sgt. Andrew Harnett holding on.
Harnett of the Calgary Police Service died in hospital on Dec. 31, 2020, after being dragged by a fleeing SUV and falling into the path of an oncoming car.
The suspect vehicle's alleged driver was 17 at the time. He turned 19 in January, but cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
The accused took the witness stand in his own defence, describing an abusive childhood where his family moved 10 times over a decade between Montreal, Toronto and Calgary to get away from his birth father.
He said he, his mother and two older siblings lived mostly in homeless shelters during that time.
In his testimony, he described planning to go to a New Year's Eve party on the day of Harnett's death.
The vehicle was pulled over because it didn't have its lights on, court heard.
As the traffic stop continued and a second police car arrived, the youth said his anxiety level began to rise. When another officer and Harnett approached the vehicle, the accused said he panicked.
"I observed Sgt. Harnett had his hand on his gun and as soon as I seen that, I took off. I was scared. My anxiety was through the roof at that time,'' he said.
"I thought something bad was going to happen. I thought just the fact 'why would he have his hand on his gun?' I took off. I panicked. I was scared.''
The teen described how Harnett leaned inside the car, holding on to the steering wheel and punching him in the head all the while yelling to "stop the car.''
"The officer grabs onto my hair and starts punching. I'm getting punched and I'm getting punched. As I try to back away my foot hits the accelerator,'' he testified.
"It was chaotic, honestly. People are screaming. I feel I have no control. I'm thinking 'I'm done. I'm going to get dragged out and get killed or seriously injured.' I was trying to protect myself at this point.''
The accused, wearing glasses with his hair pulled back in a ponytail, choked back tears several times during two hours of testimony.
He said he didn't even notice when Harnett fell away from the car window and immediately drove home to his basement suite.
"I just kept on driving. Honestly, I was thinking about myself, quite frankly. I wasn't thinking about the officer,'' he testified.
"I didn't think anything happened to him. I didn't think about him.''
The teen said he decided to turn himself in after learning that Harnett had been killed. He said he regrets his actions and can only say he is sorry.
"I'm in jail for this. It's not easy. I feel like people sometimes look at me as a monster. I'm not a monster. I'm sorry for the situation,'' he said.
"For the rest of my life, I'm going to be known as someone who killed a police officer. No matter what happens. This is it.''
The Crown is expected to cross-examine the accused on Wednesday, with closing arguments scheduled for Thursday.
Amir Abdulrahman, 20, a passenger in the vehicle, pleaded guilty last December to a lesser charge of manslaughter and was sentenced to five years in prison.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 27, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
First court appearance for boy and girl charged in death of Halifax 16-year-old
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.