Less than five minutes passed between the arrival of two RCMP officers in the isolated island community of Opitsaht and the fatal shooting of a Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation man, as revealed by Cpl. Daniel Macintosh during testimony at a coroner’s inquest probing the death of Julian Jones. The officers responded to a call around 9 p.m. PT on Feb. 27, 2021, regarding a woman reportedly being assaulted and confined in a residence on the island.
This inquest aims to scrutinize the circumstances surrounding Jones’s demise, with the jury set to formulate recommendations to avert similar tragedies, without assigning blame or criminality. Const. David Robichaud, who discharged the shots that led to Jones’s death, was summoned to testify but is not anticipated to attend. Following the summons, Robichaud retired from the RCMP and relocated out of the province, declining to participate due to being outside of B.C.’s legal jurisdiction for testimony.
Despite the Independent Investigations Office’s decision not to recommend charges against the officers after an investigation, Jones, previously convicted of multiple offenses including assaulting a Tofino RCMP officer, was prohibited from contacting several RCMP officers, including Robichaud, according to his parole officer David Paruk.
The events at the Opitsaht residence transpired swiftly, lasting under a minute, according to Macintosh. Upon knocking on the door, the officers heard a woman’s cries for help, male voices, and sounds of heavy furniture being moved inside. Subsequently, Robichaud detained John Lucas Jr., Jones’s sibling, prompting Jones to intervene, warning the officers not to harm his brother and threatening them.
Macintosh recounted observing Jones striking two objects resembling paint sticks together, creating sparks. Despite Macintosh’s instructions to drop what appeared to be knives, Jones advanced toward the officers. Robichaud deployed a Taser, causing Jones to fall to the ground, but he rose and continued approaching Macintosh, who expressed fear for his life for the first time in his career.
Robichaud fired at Jones before Macintosh could react, and despite subsequent shots fired by Robichaud, Jones persisted in advancing. Eventually, Jones collapsed, prompting his mother to rush towards him in distress. Macintosh removed the metal objects from Jones’s grasp, which were identified as flat metal files, and attempted to aid him as best he could.
Reflecting on the incident, Macintosh suggested that a different outcome might have been possible if the woman reporting the assault had exited the residence upon the officers’ arrival, enabling them to withdraw. He also mentioned that having an additional Taser could have presented an alternative course of action. Robichaud, who had already planned to transfer from the Tofino RCMP, expedited his departure from the community following the shooting.
The inquest is set to resume on Thursday.