The RCMP have agreed to additional training and mentoring for four members of the Ridge Meadows detachment after an independent government agency found the police officers acted 鈥渦nreasonably鈥� during a response to a 2019 mental health call during which a Maple Ridge man was shot and killed.

Cpl. Shayne Shea, Const. Dan Losiak, Const. Ben Ouellette, and Const. Matt Wagner will be given future mentoring or training in on-scene communication between officers and for police response to mental health emergencies. This comes after the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP released their final report into the RCMP鈥檚 handling of complaints made by Yin Yin Din about the death of her brother Kyaw Naing Maung, also known as Kyaw Din.

Chaired by Michelaine Lahaie, the commission, an independent federal agency tasked with reviewing complaints made by the public against the RCMP, stated they are 鈥渘ot satisfied鈥� with the RCMP鈥檚 report into Maung鈥檚 death.

The commission said the police agency itself 鈥渁cted unreasonably when it issued a notice of direction to Din on Sept. 8, 2020, ending an RCMP investigation into her complaint about the use of force by their members, the level of communication, and Din鈥檚 accusations that officers on scene fabricated evidence. In the notice Chief Supt. Maureen Levy, assistant district commander and operations officer for the RCMP Lower Mainland District, cited the ongoing Independent Investigations Office review of the police shooting as the reason.

鈥淭his was a puzzling decision made under puzzling circumstances,鈥� read the commission鈥檚 report.

Maung was 54 when he was shot by police in the family home he shared with his siblings on Colemore Street in 2019. He had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, and was frequently taken by police to hospital. This time, however, he wouldn鈥檛 go, and his sister, Din, called police for help, ultimately leading to the fatal confrontation.

The commission鈥檚 report said the four officers failed to communicate appropriately with each other and 鈥渕aintain situational awareness.鈥� It also said they failed to try and de-escalate the situation before they entered Maung鈥檚 bedroom, using 鈥渟urprise and force to subdue him.鈥�

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鈥淲hile the specific circumstances where Ms. Din鈥檚 brother tried to attack an RCMP member with a knife meant that it was not unreasonable to use lethal force, the RCMP members鈥� unreasonable conduct meant that the decision to burst into the bedroom in the first place was also unreasonable,鈥� the report stated.

Din accused police of failing to communicate properly with her brother, who did not speak English, of using unreasonable force, and of fabricating evidence to make it appear that her brother was violent. She also complained to the commission that she heard an officer laughing inappropriately after the shooting.

After reviewing the police file into the original incident, the final report from the Independent Investigations Office of BC, the complaint made by Din, the RCMP鈥檚 investigation into her complaint, Din鈥檚 review requests and submissions, and relevant law and policies, the commission made a number of conclusions and recommendations, including the training for the officers who were involved in the shooting.

In addition, RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki, who recently announced her retirement, said the agency will continue to expand programs that pair RCMP members with trained mental health professionals or 鈥渙therwise shift to a healthcare-oriented response to mental health crises.鈥�

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However the RCMP did not agree with other findings by made by the commission, including the recommendation that the police agency amend a policy so RCMP members avoid shouting commands at individuals who are experiencing a mental health crisis. The report stated that while the RCMP Commissioner did agree that shouting should be avoided when possible, that there were exceptions when it is necessary like at a loud music festival or busy highway. She also indicated that shouting could be a useful tool to get a person to follow police directions instead of members using physical force.

The commission replied that the recommendation was made in general terms in order to leave room for RCMP policy centres, the RCMP Commissioner and her advisors to develop concrete policy, 鈥渢hat reflected the intention of the recommendation while accounting for operational realities and the use of discretion.鈥�

鈥淚t should go without saying that the Commission鈥檚 recommendation was not meant to prevent RCMP members from using a loud voice in a noisy environment, nor from ever shouting commands as a resort to using physical force,鈥� the commission stated in the report.

As for Din鈥檚 other accusations, the commission found the four officers did not fabricate evidence at the scene. Neither was there any basis to conclude that another officer, Const. David Jung, laughed disrespectfully.