Sunday, June 14, 2020


Mi'kmaq man fatally shot by New Brunswick RCMP

MIRAMICHI, N.B. — The chief of a New Brunswick First Nation says an Indigenous man shot and killed by the RCMP was troubled, but not a violent person.

Chief Bill Ward of the Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation said Rodney Levi shouldn't have become the province's second victim of a fatal police shooting in less than a month on Friday.

"He had his demons but he was always very friendly, he never tried to harm anybody," Ward said during an emotional Facebook event on Saturday.


© Provided by The Canadian Press Ward says Levi visited his home Friday and talked about wanting to move to Fort McMurray, Alta., for a fresh start.

He said Levi was a slight man who tried to get a mental health assessment at hospital recently, but was refused. Ward said Levi had trouble sleeping in the days before the incident.

"He's not a violent man. He might have poached some salmon but that's it," Ward said from the community about 30 kilometres west of Miramichi.

The RCMP were called to a home after Levi attended a barbecue, where he had planned to seek guidance from a church minister.

Ward said police told him that Levi had two knives in his sweater and threatened officers.

"He wasn't in the right state of mind at that point of time. He wasn't a violent person, so basically to me what it says is that if you're mentally ill and you have a bad day, the cops can kill you for it," said Ward.

"I just want to preserve his memory and not let people twist the story to justify what they did," he said, taking several breaks to regain his composure. "He wasn't some monster that they're going to try to paint him to be."

Ward said community members were going to remember Levi by lighting a sacred fire and holding an ceremony.

The RCMP said officers responded to a complaint about an "unwanted man" in a home near the community at 7:40 p.m. local time on Friday.

© Provided by The Canadian Press"When police arrived, they were confronted by a man who was carrying knives," said RCMP Cpl. Jullie Rogers-Marsh.

She said officers used a stun gun several times but were unable to subdue the man.

An officer then discharged a firearm. The suspect was declared dead in hospital around 9 p.m.

On June 4, Chantel Moore, 26, died after being shot by an Edmundston Police Department officer. Moore, from a First Nation in British Columbia, had moved to the community in northwestern New Brunswick to be near her mother and six-year-old daughter.

Police have said an officer performing a wellness check allegedly encountered a woman with a knife.

"It's an international disaster when you talk about racism," Roger Augustine, the regional chief representing New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, said in an interview.

"Racism is everywhere. It's like a virus, like COVID-19. That's how I see racism. It just seeps through the communities and kills the young people, and the old people."

Quebec's independent police investigation agency, the Bureau des enquetes independantes, is investigating both shootings. New Brunswick does not have a similar agency, which is why the Quebec organization is involved.

On Saturday, the bureau explained in an unsigned statement that it had accepted a request by New Brunswick authorities to determine the circumstances surrounding the death of a 48-year-old man during an RCMP intervention.

The watchdog said it is responsible for informing for keeping in touch with family and while the information is confidential to the bureau, the family representative can choose to share it as they see fit.

The Quebec organization said it will submit a report to the coroner overseeing the probe and the New Brunswick Public Prosecution Service to determine whether charges will be laid.

Levi's death prompted scores of emotional reactions from members of the community.

"My bro Rodney Levi, my childhood friend ... Got tears in my eyes thinking how this happened," wrote Dwayne Everett Ward.

"Shot twice by the police ... I pray for all your family, I know they're hurting right now ... I'm overwhelmed with sadness about all this."

There have been calls for a broader inquiry to examine systemic bias against Indigenous people in the province's policing and criminal justice systems.

Jeremy Dutcher, a New Brunswick-born, classically-trained Indigenous tenor and composer, called out the province's premier on social media, saying he wants to see discussions on issues like police defunding and better social programs .

"I'm really encouraging our leadership in this country to sit down and listen to Indigenous people," Dutcher said. "If the Truth and Reconciliation Commission didn't wake people up ... I hope events like this are starting to make things very clear that we have a real problem in this country."

For Dutcher, those discussions should also include body cameras for police officers.

"When we don't witness, we only have one side of the story," Dutcher said. "Rodney, Chantel, they don't have the chance to tell their side of the story, there's no justice there."

Jake Stewart, New Brunswick's minister of Aboriginal affairs, has said he supports the call, saying the province has a problem with systemic racism toward Indigenous people.

On Friday, the commissioner of the RCMP, Brenda Lucki, issued a statement saying it is her responsibility to ensure the RCMP is free of racism, discrimination and bias.

She also said she struggled with the concept of systemic racism when asked about the issue.

"I did acknowledge that we, like others, have racism in our organization, but I did not say definitively that systemic racism exists in the RCMP," she said. "I should have."

"As many have said, I do know that systemic racism is part of every institution, the RCMP included. Throughout our history and today, we have not always treated racialized and Indigenous people fairly."

Augustine said "systemic racism is not owned by the RCMP."

"And it's not owned by any government in any country. Systemic racism is something that has to be addressed by the community itself, and in this case it's New Brunswick. Racism exists in all peoples. Racism is about judging people. When (you) walk down the streets and you see someone you don't like, you judge their clothing, the colour of their skin .... that's racism."

The six chiefs in the Wolastoqey First Nation in New Brunswick also issued a statement on Levi's death.

"As we have said all week, we are not experiencing isolated incidents, this is just further proof that systemic discrimination is pervasive in this province," they wrote. "We need action now, we cannot afford another tragic loss of life."

Meanwhile, marches were organized in several communities in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia to pay tribute to Moore on Saturday.

The events were followed by "healing walks" in Edmundston, Fredericton and Moncton, N.B., as well as Halifax and Membertou, N.S.

In Halifax, more than 500 people — many of them wearing masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19 — gathered at Halifax City Hall to listen to speeches and Indigenous music before marching through the sun-drenched downtown to the Halifax Regional Police headquarters.

A few protesters carried a banner that read: "Abolish the police."

Organizer Raven Davis told the crowd that Moore's young daughter will grow up mourning her mother every time she sees a police car.

"Chantel's little girl is going to bed tonight without a hug from her loving arms," Davis said. "Most importantly, she will never have he opportunity to know her mother's resilience, strength and beauty."

A private funeral service was held for Moore in Edmundston on Thursday, where she was remembered as a kind soul who united family from both sides of the country.

— With files from Ross Marowits in Toronto, Sidhartha Banerjee in Montreal and Michael MacDonald in Halifax.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 13, 2020.

Metepenagiag First Nation Chief demands answers following N.B. RCMP killing of Rodney Levi

'I can't justify it. I can't,' Chief Bill Ward said

Gail Harding · CBC News · 

Rodney Levi, a member of the Metepenagiag First Nation, was shot by a member of the Sunny Corner RCMP during an incident in Boom Road, N.B., on Friday evening. He later died in hospital. (Facebook )
Metepenagiag First Nation Chief Bill Ward is demanding answers after a member of the community in New Brunswick, 48-year-old Rodney Levi, was shot and killed by the RCMP on Friday evening. 
"I can't justify it. I can't," Ward said of Levi's death as he wiped away tears during an address to the community in a Facebook live video on Saturday. "He had his demons but he was always very friendly, but he never tried to harm anybody." 
Ward said he had spoken to Levi earlier Friday and said he was in good spirits but had told him he hadn't slept in a few days. The killing took place in Boom Road, about 30 kilometres from Miramichi, N.B.
New Brunswick RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jullie Rogers Marsh said members of the Sunny Corner RCMP responded to a report of an unwanted person at a residence at 7:40 p.m. Friday.
"When police arrived they were confronted by a man who was carrying knives," Rogers Marsh said.
She said a stun gun was deployed several times but was unsuccessful. 
"A member of the RCMP discharged a firearm," Rogers Marsh said.She said the man was treated at the scene and taken to hospital but died of his injuries around 9 p.m. The investigation into the fatal shooting of Levi continues Saturday. 

Second death 

Levi's death comes just over a week after Chantel Moore, 26, was shot by a police officer in Edmundston, N.B., on June 4.
The two police shootings are concerning, said Bernard Richard, New Brunswick's former ombudsman. 
Now an adviser with six First Nations communities in N.B. focused on child well-being, Richard said the killing of Levi is particularly disturbing given what what Indigenous communities in the province are already dealing with.
"There's no question it adds to the tension that already exists," Richard said. 
Healing walks are underway across N.B. today in memory of Moore. 
Metepenagiag First Nation Chief Bill Ward was emotional during a 45-minute Facebook Live video Saturday as he spoke to community members about what he knew about Rodney Levi's death. (Bill Ward/Facebook)

Outside agency to investigate

Eight investigators with Quebec's Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes, which investigates cases where civilians are seriously injured or killed in police operations, arrived in New Brunswick Saturday morning after the RCMP had requested its assistance to investigate a police shooting. 
BEI will communicate with the family and "provide them with all relevant information relating to the investigation process as long as this does not interfere with the investigation." 
BEI said at the end of its investigation, it will submit its report to the coroner responsible for this investigation in New Brunswick, as well as to the New Brunswick Public Prosecution Service who will determine whether to lay criminal charges against the police officers involved. 

'Terrible relations'

Richard said trust between First Nations communities and police forces across Canada is probably at an all time low. 
"This is just terrible and it adds to the terrible relations that exist now," he said of the most recent killing.  
Richard said the situation overall is deplorable and quite concerning.  
The road between Boom Road and Sunny Corner remains closed as police continue their investigation into the RCMP shooting of Rodney Levi. (Michele Brideau/Radio Canada)
"There's concern now on a number of fronts of more violence actually so it's the last thing that First Nation communities need or that New Brunswick needs." 
Richard said he thinks there needs to be Indigenous expertise involved in the reviews of both deaths so a level of trust is maintained with Indigenous communities. 

Regional chief calls for calm

In a statement, Regional Chief Assembly of First Nations for N.B. and P.E.I. Roger Augustine  also called for  Indigenous leaders to be included in the investigation. 
"The only way we can accept the sincerity of the claims of reform by the RCMP's top brass is to have inclusion of our people and our leaders at the table." 
Augustine said while he understood that emotions are high, he called for people to remain calm and find peace within themselves.
"It is the only way we can heal. Moving forward, my focus will be on the healing of our people as we struggle with indifference and other issues like poverty, mental health and addictions," Augustine said.
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