Cop cleared in another review of Dunphy shooting
Frustration mounts as information trickles out — slowly
RNC not publicly releasing report
The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary announced Wednesday afternoon that yet another independent review had cleared officer Joe Smyth of any wrongdoing in the 2015 shooting death of Donald Dunphy.
The Saskatoon Police Service had reviewed whether Smyth violated any RNC policies, protocols or regulations, but did not look at whether those protocols were appropriate.
RNC chief William Janes issued an emailed statement to media, but refused to do an interview or answer any questions. He said he was only verbally briefed on the status of the report, and no decision has been made yet on whether to release it.
This makes the fourth report into the Dunphy inquiry where bits and pieces have come out, but officials have refused to publicly release the document.
Smyth was on the protective detail of then-premier Paul Davis and went to the Mitchell’s Brook house to assess a potential threat based on comments Dunphy made on Twitter.
According to Smyth’s account, after entering the house and speaking with Dunphy for a little while, Dunphy pointed a firearm at him, so Smyth shot him in self-defence.
The police have concluded no charges will be laid, and Justice Minister Andrew Parsons is in the process of calling a public inquiry into the matter.
The RCMP has refused to release its investigation report, or the report of retired judge David Riche, who was hired to provide oversight on the investigation. The province released a short covering letter from the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team saying the RCMP investigation was unbiased, after it reviewed the investigation file, but the full ASIRT report is being kept secret for now.
And in the last week, Riche has done interviews with several media outlets, including The Telegram, and revealed new information each time, such as the number of shots fired, and where the bullets fired by Smyth hit Dunphy.
Faced with an information vacuum of the past 18 months, the partial information is fuelling conspiracy theorists online. None of this sits well with Sean Ryan, a former senior officer with the RNC who set up the protective services unit and has previously trained recruits on use of force.
Ryan said he is reluctant to speak out, but he felt the comments made by Riche demonstrate a profound misunderstanding of the police use of force continuum.
“Of course, your life is in jeopardy, and it very well could be microseconds away. It’s very easy for somebody to be a Monday morning quarterback.
Ryan said he is deeply worried about public confidence, and it’s important for the police chief to speak out publicly and defend his officers.
“Strap on a set, man. Get up. You’ve got all the grounds in the world now to stand up, where are you?” he said. “The public is looking for that, because to me, that’s all about that confidence — that public confidence.”
Ryan also said he’s worried about internal morale and confidence in the leadership at the RNC.
“This is not about taking sides,” he said.
“The public is getting a little bit of a tainted view. And I’m not saying this to support Joey Smyth or anybody. I’m saying this to support police officers.”