RCMP officers cleared after firing 28 shots at man with compound bow, killing him in Red Deer

Security footage shows a man pointing a compound bow at an RCMP officer in Red Deer on May 24, 2021. (Source: ASIRT)

Mounties acted legally when they shot and killed a 46-year-old man in the parkade of Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre, Alberta's police watchdog announced Friday.

The man, whom the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) did not name in its public report, died on May 24, 2021.

ASIRT said he pulled up next to an officer parked outside of the hospital on 39 Street and 50 A Avenue and told them he had a weapon and was going inside.

The officer called for backup and followed the man as he drove his vehicle into the parkade.

"[The man] then exited his vehicle with a compound bow as well as additional arrows that he tucked into a pocket on his pants," the report states.

He then pointed the weapon at the officer, ASIRT said, in a confrontation that was captured by a security camera and the officer's dash camera.

The officer demanded the man drop the bow but he refused, something that was later confirmed by civilian witnesses and an audio recorded in the police cruiser.

"I don’t want to shoot you, just put it down, we can talk about it. Put it down, just talk to me…what’s going on? We can talk about it," the officer is heard saying.

Four other officers arrived as backup, also urging the man to surrender, but instead he "moved towards the officers and brought the bow up to a shooting stance," ASIRT said.

All five officers fired for a total of 28 shots. An autopsy concluded that four of the bullets hit the man and he died at the scene.

"While the death of [the man] is unfortunate, the force used by the subject officers was necessary and reasonable in all the circumstances," concluded ASIRT executive director Michael Ewenson.

ASIRT released a photo of the bow and arrows a few days after the shooting.