A 20 year old young man was shot seven times by a police officer EIGHT YEARS ago. Beau Baker was in a mental health crisis and called 911 on April 2, 2015 asking for help. A Waterloo Region Police Service officer responded to Beau Baker's Brybeck Cres. apartment. Mr. Baker approached him while allegedly carrying a small knife. Again allegedly Mr. Baker was ordered to drop the knife before the officer shot at him seven times.
I believe that the death of Mr. Baker was a tragedy although I do not know if it could have been avoided. My suspicion is that it could have been. I also believe that the passage of eight years before the mandated coroner's inquest takes place is disgusting and contemptible. Excuses abound as to the delays amounting to eight years. They are nothing but that...i.e. excuses.
Are the Waterloo Region Police Service responsible for the delay? Is it the Ontario Ministry of the Solicitor General? Is it the Ontario Chief Coroner's office? There have been way too many shootings, woundings and deaths of Waterloo Region citizens at the hands of our police over the years. Making both the family and the public wait eight years for further answers is in my opinion an intentional attempt to avoid transparency and accountability. Maybe yesterday's Waterloo Regional Council's acrimonious debates over increasing the police budget should have mentioned how many citizens our police have injured and killed. Are financial budget incentives needed to reduce these shootings? That is truly a scary thought.
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