In closing arguments at the Braidwood Inquiry this past week, the lawyer for Poland suggested that the RCMP officers talked about using a taser before they arrived on scene to the incident. He called what they did a premediated action which resulted in excessive force.
What the lawyer fails to understand (even though he is an ex-police officer) is that it is vitally important to discuss with other officers your plans before you arrive on scene, especially for dangerous situations. If you are working with a partner, it is crucial to ensure that both officers understand what each other is thinking as they arrive on scene. For instance, “ok, if he does this, we’ll do this, etc. ok?” or “You take this side, I’ll take the other, if they exit, we’ll challenge them”. This communication protects the safety of the officers involved and often is a mental rehearsal or refresher for those attending of the safest way to approach a situation.
To say that talking about an incident before you get there is wrong creates an erroneous belief that we must be treating an incident like it is in court before police even attend (i.e. dont’ talk to other witnesses). In some serious situations, you don’t have the opportunity to have a huddle during the situation to figure out what you’re going to do next. You have to trust that the other officer is going to make the same decisions based on similar training or a pre-incident communication.
The four officers have taken lots of scrutiny during their testimony at the inquiry and it’s not my intention to add to that. However, when asked if they discussed using the taser before they arrived, they should have said “Yes. I discussed all options with my partners, including the most serious so we could be most prepared for the incident.” Of course in hindsight, we can say what should have been said, but all in all, officers should not be made to feel at fault for discussing and planning options for their courses of action before arriving on scene.
Talking the Beat 