Brydon Whitstone's parents considering lawsuit against RCMP constable who fatally shot their son

The family of Brydon Whitstone says they're considering legal action against the Saskatchewan RCMP officer who shot their son over a year ago.

Last week, the jury at a coroner's inquest cited the manner of Whitstone's death as "undetermined."

The 22-year-old man from Onion Lake Cree Nation died after he was shot by an RCMP officer in North Battleford, Sask., on Oct. 21, 2017. Whitstone had led officers on a high-speed chase, during which the vehicle he was driving collided with two marked RCMP vehicles. He then refused to exit his car, even as officers surrounded him and shouted orders to surrender.

The inquest jury could have found Whitstone's death was a homicide or a suicide, among other options. They chose neither.

The officer who shot Whitstone, Const. Jerry Abbott, told the coroner's inquest last week that he thought Whitstone was reaching for a gun. No weapon was found, but several bullets were recovered from Whitstone's clothing.

Whitstone's parents, Dorothy Laboucane and Albert Whitstone, both told CBC News Tuesday they are mulling a civil suit against Abbott, who was transferred from the North Battleford detachment two months ago.

Stephanie Lavallee, a Whitstone family lawyer, would not comment on the potential civil litigation.

Dutch Lerat, a vice-chief with the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations, also said the family is considering a lawsuit.

FSIN also took the Regina Police Service, which investigated Whitstone's shooting, to task.

"The Regina Police Service should have provided information and accurate reports to the family in a timely manner, which left a number of unanswered questions," FSIN said in a press release.

The Regina Police Service decided not to lay charges following its investigation, after consulting Crown prosecutors from the province, the Ministry of Justice said in September.

Regina police previously told CBC News that an officer was tasked to be a liaison with the Whitstone family.

"[The liaison's] function would be to try to give them as much information as possible without jeopardizing the investigation or precluding its outcome," the spokesperson said at the time.

The RCMP also conducted an internal review after Whitstone's death.

Review of investigation sought

In delivering its conclusion last Friday, the jury at the inquest — which was not a criminal proceeding — made one recommendation for the RCMP: "Use of Taser gun or other intervention to immobilize or stun the suspect first prior to the use of a gun."

Both the FSIN and the Whitstone family are now calling for a review of the original investigation, plus a new one. They cited investigative bodies such as Ontario's Special Investigations Unit as potential investigators.

"We recognize this family's grief and their desire for closure," said a spokesperson for the Regina Police Service. "If there is another process that can help them move forward in their lives, not forgetting Brydon, but healing, then we support them."

Saskatchewan's Ministry of Justice appointed an investigation observer to bring a lens of independence to Regina police's work. That observer is typically a former police officer with major crime experience. In this case, the observer was not a former member of the RCMP.

"On behalf of the ministry, our thoughts are with the family and friends of Mr. Whitstone in light of their tragic loss," a ministry spokesperson said Tuesday.

"Any complaint dealing with a municipal police service in Saskatchewan should be directed to the Public Complaints Commission. This independent, civilian led commission has jurisdiction, as the matter referenced by the FSIN deals with the Regina Police Service and its investigation."

Complaints about the RCMP should be directed to the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission, the spokesperson added.

Lavallee said she was disturbed that the accounts of some RCMP officers who dealt with Whitstone that night changed between the time they gave their original statements to Regina Police Service in October 2017 and their testimony during last week's inquest.

She also noted inconsistencies contained between officers' testimonies last week.

"As expected, the coroner's inquest provided a forum for full disclosure of the facts as they pertain to this case," the RCMP said in a statement Tuesday.

"Our officers' testimonies regarding the circumstances of Brydon Whitstone's death are now part of the public record and provide a full narrative around the sequence of events from an RCMP perspective."

Internal review done at RCMP

Following the inquest, the RCMP said, "We will examine what they had to say and provide a written response to the Saskatchewan Coroner's Service which will be made available on their website."

The results of the RCMP's internal review after Whitstone's death have yet to be released.

"We are not in a position to release those results quite yet," the RCMP said. "However, we remain committed to addressing the outcome publicly."

Whitstone's parents were supported at Tuesday's press conference by Debbie Baptiste, the mother of Colten Boushie, an Indigenous man shot on a rural farm in August 2016 and whose death became the centre of a divisive second-degree murder trial earlier this year.

The defendant, Gerald Stanley, was found not guilty.