VANCOUVER – Robert Dziekanski might be alive today had he not picked up a stapler while facing four Mounties in a standoff at Vancouver International Airport, the supervising RCMP officer yesterday told a public inquiry into his death.
"There's no reason he should have picked up that stapler," Cpl. Benjamin Monty Robinson told the inquiry examining the circumstances of the death of Dziekanski, a Polish immigrant who died after being jolted five times by an RCMP Taser on Oct. 14, 2007.
Robinson, 38, was replying to Don Rosenbloom, lawyer for the government of Poland, who asked what he'd meant during testimony Monday when he said, "This should not have happened."
Robinson said could think of nothing he or his men could have done differently: "I did everything consistent with my training. ... He should not have died."
With his testimony this week, Robinson became the fourth Mountie involved in the incident to change key statements made to investigators after the Tasering.
Walter Kosteckyj, a former RCMP officer and lawyer for the deceased's mother, accused Robinson and his squad of making a "cowboy entrance" and failing to assess the scene, discuss a course of action or apply a reasonable standard of first aid by monitoring the downed man.
Robinson told the inquiry his first aid training certification had expired more than five years before he took the call that night.
According to testimony to the inquiry, Dziekanski, 41, was not "wildly swinging" a stapler as previously stated, nor did Mounties have to "wrestle him to the ground" in order to restrain him.
"The Taser took him to the ground," Robinson said.
Robinson repeatedly said his initial statements were "not 100 per cent accurate" or, "Clearly, I didn't articulate very well."
He changed an earlier statement that Dziekanski was blue once on the ground to "his ear was blue."
Outside the inquiry room, Kosteckyj told reporters: "Their stories are very similar but they all changed, at the same time, during the course of cross-examination."
In earlier testimony, Const. Kwesi Millington, who fired the Taser, denied a lawyer's allegation they'd conspired to match up testimony.
Robinson maintained the four armed Mounties felt threatened by the man with a stapler in his hand. But he proved unable to indicate any threatening action on Dziekanski's part on a video shown in court.
"There, there's slight movement in the video," said Robinson, pointing to what Kosteckyj called swaying. "I thought he was going to hit me with the stapler." he added.
With three Mounties talking to him at once, Kosteckyj asked: "Is it any wonder he was confused?"
Kosteckyj concluded by asking Robinson: "Are you prepared to admit now, you all four panicked and acted far too quickly?"
"No, we didn't." Robinson said.
The inquiry continues today.
Stapler is dangerous man!
