N.B. police officer who fatally shot Chantel Moore during wellness check testifies at inquest
The police officer who fatally shot a 26-year-old Indigenous woman during a wellness check in Edmundston, N.B., two years ago says he doesn't know why things escalated so quickly.
Edmundston Police Force Const. Jeremy Son testified Tuesday at the coroner's inquest into the death of Chantel Moore, who was shot on the balcony outside her apartment on June 4, 2020.
Son arrived to Moore's home to check on her after her former boyfriend, Jonathan Brunet, called 911 and told police he had received disturbing text messages that appeared to be coming from someone who may have been in Moore's apartment.
The officer told the coroner's jury that he arrived on the balcony outside Moore's third-floor apartment around 2:30 a.m. and could see through the window that she was sleeping on a couch.
Son, who is testifying in French, told jurors that Moore woke after he knocked on the window and shone a light on himself to show her he was a police officer in uniform. Moore appeared to grab something metallic and headed for the door of the apartment, Son told the five-member jury.
Moore exited the apartment pointing a knife in the air and had an angry expression on her face, Son testified. She advanced toward him despite his demands that she drop the knife, he said.
"She kept moving toward me," Son told the inquest.
He said he kept backing up, adding that once he got to the railing of the balcony, he had no where else to go. Son said he shot Moore four times in quick succession and she fell to the floor of the balcony.
"It happened very quickly," he said, adding that he couldn't understand why events escalated so quickly. "There was no reason it happened that way, in my opinion."
Son said the police force only had one working Taser and on that night, the weapon was with another officer.
Edmundston Police Force policy states that officers can use their firearms "soon as there is risk of serious injury or death it's the service weapon that should be used. We need to stop the threat as soon as possible in order to stop that from happening."
Earlier Tuesday, Sgt. Marc Bouchard of the Edmundston Police Force told the inquest that he was the second officer to arrive on the scene. He said he saw Son on the balcony and heard the officer telling Moore to drop a knife. He said he then heard four gunshots in rapid succession.
Moore's mother, Martha Martin, sat near the front of the inquest room and gasped and started crying in reaction to Bouchard's testimony.
Bouchard said he got out of his car and ran up the stairs as he radioed "shots fired" and "I also asked for an ambulance."
He said when he got to the balcony he saw Moore lying face down. Bouchard said Son requested latex gloves and began compressing Moore's body in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Bouchard said he checked for a pulse.
"There was no pulse at the moment," he told jurors.
Bouchard said another officer arrived to the scene along with paramedics, who determined Moore was dead. Bouchard said he secured evidence and went to Martin's home to notify her of her daughter's death.
He said that in June 2020, the Edmundston Police Force had three Tasers but only one was in service. The force, Bouchard added, is evaluating whether to equip its officers with body cameras.
The shooting was investigated by Quebec's independent police watchdog -- the Bureau des enquetes independantes. In response to the watchdog's investigation, New Brunswick's Public Prosecutions Servces announced in June 2021 that the evidence indicated the officer who shot Moore was responding to a potential lethal threat and his actions were reasonable.
Jurors at the coroner's inquest will have the opportunity to make recommendations aimed at preventing future deaths under similar circumstances.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 17, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NDP motion regarding Palestinian statehood passes after major Liberal alterations
A motion from the federal New Democrats initially calling on Canada to recognize the 'State of Palestine' passed amid widespread acrimony on Monday, after the Liberals drastically altered its wording to see the government simply work towards that aim as part of a two-state solution.
'He didn't want to die': Family of Calgary man killed in standoff speaks out
Family of a Calgary man killed after a 30-hour standoff with police last week are speaking out, sharing details of the tense and heart-wrenching experience.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Ohio mom who left toddler alone 10 days when she went on vacation pleads guilty to aggravated murder
An Ohio mother whose 16-month-old daughter died after being left home alone in a playpen for 10 days last summer while she went on vacation was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Retired teacher pleads guilty to paying for sex with 15-year-old in Collingwood, Ont.
In a Barrie courtroom on Monday, a retired high school teacher from the Niagara Region pleaded guilty to sexual touching and obtaining sexual services from a 15-year-old boy in Collingwood in 2021.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
5 charged in Calgary kidnappings that targeted women
Calgary police have charged five men in a pair of kidnappings last year that targeted innocent victims.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Canadian commander of volunteer fighter group dies in Ukraine
A Canadian-born commander of the so-called Norman Brigade, a volunteer fighting group in Ukraine, has died.