Officer used reasonable force when he shot machete-wielding suspect: ASIRT

ASIRT released this photo of a machete, which was held by a suspect who was shot by police on Aug. 25, 2019. (Supplied/ASIRT)

A provincial agency has found a Calgary police officer used reasonable force in the shooting of a man who was high on drugs and threatened him and his partner with a machete.

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) investigated the incident on Aug. 25, 2019.

In the final report, released Friday, ASIRT said police responded to reports of a suspicious person who was making threatening statements in a southeast Calgary neighbourhood.

ASIRT says the situation escalated when the suspect approached one of the officers with a machete held up in a threatening manner.

Once the suspect was about five metres away, ASIRT says the officer shot him twice, hitting him in the abdomen and left leg.

The suspect fell to the ground, but refused to drop the machete, instead taking out another knife while threatening the officer, demanding that he "kill him."

The report says the suspect was immobile, but officers weren't able to disarm and arrest him, so less lethal weapons were deployed.

ASIRT says another officer, equipped with an ARWEN, fired at the suspect.

"Unexpectedly, (the suspect) showed little reaction when hit with the first ARWEN round. (The officer) ultimately discharged the ARWEN six more times," it wrote in the report.

Each time the officer fired the weapon, it was aimed in such a way to make the suspect drop the weapons, ASIRT said, but all of the shots did not make him drop either weapon.

A conducted energy weapon (CEW) was also used on the suspect but that failed to subdue him, so officers called in the tactical team, along with negotiators to deal with the suspect.

"Using safety shields, a pepper gun and CEWs, tactical officers were able to take (the suspect) into custody. (The suspect) was then dealt with by EMS and transported to the hospital for treatment of the gunshot injuries."

A toxicology test at the hospital was a "presumptive positive" for amphetamines and the suspect, who was previously diagnosed with schizophrenia, was assessed by a psychiatrist, ASIRT said.

In its analysis of the situation, ASIRT says the officer who shot the suspect was "duty bound to act" when he and his partner arrived and witnessed the suspect advancing on them with a machete.

"There is no doubt that the machete (the suspect) was wielding was capable of causing death or grievous bodily harm to (the officer)," ASIRT said.

"As such, (the officer's) response in using his firearm to shoot (the suspect) was proportionate to the threat of death or grievous bodily harm that he posed to himself."

Following the incident, the suspect was charged with assaulting a peace officer and numerous weapons offences.