N.B. minister says Chantel Moore inquest recommendations being sent to police forces for review
New Brunswick’s minister of public safety said Friday morning that the recommendations on policing that have come out of the Chantel Moore coroner’s inquest will be reviewed by municipal police forces across the province over the next six months.
Chantel Moore, a 26-year-old Indigenous woman, was fatally shot by police in Edmundston, N.B., in June 2020 during a wellness check after advancing toward an officer with a knife.
During a four-day inquest looking at the circumstances surrounding her death, five jurors came up with almost 20 recommendations - most dealing with police training and their access to less-lethal tools.
The jury called for strengthening best practices, like having two officers present during wellness checks, and ensuring access to Tasers and other less-lethal tools.
In addition, the jury recommends that police begin relationship-building with First Nations communities, potentially hiring a community liaison between a force and community.
Minister Bill Hogan said in the New Brunswick legislature Friday the recommendations will be forwarded to the appropriate agencies, like municipal police forces across the province.
"From the reading of the recommendations, I would agree that they look to be very good," he said. "However, I’m not in a position to say whether they'll all be implemented at this time, or whether or not they can do it in six months."
He said municipalities with their own police forces decide how resources are spent – like equipment.
"You can look at Woodstock for example. When I was on town council, we decided that we would buy some Tasers for our police officers so that they would have another option in situations where that was required," he said. "We couldn't afford to buy one for every officer all the time, so they had to be shared and we had to ensure they were charged up and ready to use."
One of the recommendations was to establish an independent agency to investigate serious incidents involving police officers, who would have a good understanding of the policing system in New Brunswick.
In October 2021, the province reached an agreement "in principle" with Nova Scotia that would allow New Brunswick to use its Serious Incident Response Team when incidents occur.
That legislation is still being worked on, and while Hogan said the agency likely won’t have a permanent office in New Brunswick, "they will have access to all the resources our police officers would have and they’ll have the same authority."
The City of Edmundston declined to comment on the outcome or recommendations from the inquest.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction overturned by N.Y. appeals court
New York's highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction, reversing a landmark ruling of the #MeToo era in determining the trial judge improperly allowed women to testify about allegations against the ex-movie mogul that weren't part of the case.
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment that is banned at Queen’s Park.
CTE: Researchers believe widespread brain injury may contribute to veteran suicide rate
Researchers are working to better understand if some Canadian military veterans may be suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE -- a disorder previously found in the brains of professional football and hockey players after their death.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
New deep-water channel allows first ship to pass Key bridge wreckage in Baltimore
The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deep-water channel in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the harbor since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago, halting most maritime traffic through the city's port.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.