Policy

New Video of Five Year Old Vancouver Police Shooting of Bipolar Man Throws Closed Case Into Question

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Paul Boyd, a 39-year-old bipolar animator, was shot to death by Vancouver police in 2007 after creating a public disturbance and allegedly wielding a bicycle chain at cops. Two years later the British Columbia Criminal Justice Branch ruled there was insufficient evidence to prove excessive force by the shooting officer, and a final report two months ago from the Police Complaint Commissioner exonerated the officer, Constable Lee Chipperfield. On Monday, according to the Province, the police chief said  "there was no misconduct" in the incident, but today the BC Civil Liberty Association released new video it had obtained from a tourist who had recorded Boyd's final moments and not realized the incident had become a controversial one, which has caused the BC Attorney General to back an external investigation.

According to CBC, the video begins after Boyd had already been shot seven times. In the video, you can see police take Boyd's bicycle chain away while he is already on all fours on the ground. The moment of the last shot is not caught in frame. CBC offered to show the video to Vancouver police before airing it, but the department declined. The video, below:

Reason on police and cameras.