No charges laid in non-fatal shooting

An RCMP B.C. Highway Patrol officer will not be facing charges relating to a non-fatal shooting in Kelowna.

The B.C. Prosecution Service said the shooting happened on Dec. 22, 2019, when the officer was investigating suspected Motor Vehicle Act infractions.

The Independent Investigations Office was tasked with reviewing the case to determine if the officer had committed any criminal offences and a report was submitted to the Prosecution Service.

The report stated the officer attempted to pull over a truck that had a burnt-out headlight and was travelling at excessive speeds.

The truck eventually came to a stop in a cul-de-sac and the officer exited the vehicle with their weapon drawn and calling for the occupants to exit the vehicle, when they took off again, almost hitting the officer.

The officer then fired two shots at the truck, but the suspect vehicle fled the scene again.

The truck was later found with a bullet hole in the pillar of the driver’s door, the driver and passenger doors fragmented and mostly missing, and blood on the driver’s seat.

The driver of the truck was found after the incident with a bullet lodged in his right arm. He was arrested for assault with a weapon and flight from police, and subsequently charged with flight from police, dangerous operations of conveyance, and assaulting a peace officer with a weapon.

Upon reviewing the report, it was determined the available evidence did not meet the B.C. Prosecution Service’s charge assessment standard and it was not able to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the officer committed any offence in relation to the incident.