THE DZIEKANSKI FILES
On October 14, 2007 a Polish
man named Robert Dziekanski arrived at the Vancouver International Airport in
Richmond, British Columbia, Canada.
While in the international exit gate, he had a brief physical clash with the
police, during which he was wrestled to the ground and tasered several times.
He died shortly after.
The incident prompted worldwide attention and controversy.
Video Footage:
There are two known videos of the Dziekanski incident.
| Paul Pritchard, a witness to the incident, filmed the death of Mr. Dziekanski with a hand-held video camera. On November 14, 2007, his video was released to the media. | You Tube
(unedited, 9:59 minutes) Canadian Press (edited, 2:37 minutes) CTV News (unedited excerpt, 4:11) |
| Another witness, Sima Ashrafinia also filmed the incident using her cell phone, though the footage is of poor quality and does not appear to show the entire incident. | You Tube video of CTV news report showing excerpts from the Ashrafinia video. |
Completed inquirers and reports:
In the aftermath of the incident, many officials associated with the various bureaucracies Mr. Dziekanski encountered during his airport encounter announced that they would produce full reports detailing what exactly transpired on October 14, and would report on what, if any, irregularities or errors were made that may have contributed to the incident.
| Organization | Date of Public Release | Links |
| Canada Border Services Agency | November 26, 2007 | Report
Pertaining to the Interaction of the CBSA With Robert Dziekanski on October
13-14, 2007 also Appendix A: Chronology of Events (pdf) |
| Vancouver International Airport | December 6, 2007 | Preliminary Report on the Circumstances of the Death of Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver International Airport on October 14, 2007 (pdf) |
Pending or promised inquirers and reports:
| Organization | Public Information | Scheduled Completion |
| Integrated Homicide Investigation Team of British Columbia | Press
Release, October 14, 2007 Press Release II |
Completed, awaiting release. |
| Commission for Public Complains Against the Royal Canadian Mounted Police |
Press
Release, November 8, 2007 |
? |
| Government of the Republic of Poland | Press Release, November 16, 2007 | ? |
| Ontario Provincial Police (external investigation) | Press Release, November 17, 2007 | ? |
| British Columbia Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General |
Press Release, November 19, 2007 Terms of Reference, February 18, 2008 |
Phase one- June, 2008 Phase two- TBA |
| British Columbia Coroners Service |
Press Release (pdf), November 21, 2007 Press Release II (pdf), March 20, 2008 |
Inquest scheduled for DELAYED |
| Metro Vancouver Regional District Police Departments | ? | ? |
| Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security of the House of Commons of Canada | ? | ? |
Other reports
| Organization | Public Information | Notes |
| RCMP | Report on Conducted Energy Weapons and Excited Delirium Syndrome, October 29, 2007 | |
| Commission for Public Complains Against the Royal Canadian Mounted Police | Executive Summary of CPC report concerning the RCMP's use of the Conducted Energy Weapon, December 12, 2007 | Interim report completed. Not yet fully released to public. |
| Thomas R. Braidwood's study commission of inquiry on the use of conducted energy weapons (Tasers) in British Columbia | Press Release, February 18, 2008 | Scheduled for June 30 |
Relevant locations
Condor Airlines Flight DE6070— Robert Dziekanski's flight from Frankfurt, Germany to Vancouver, Canada
Vancouver International Airport— Scene of the crisis, located in
Richmond, British Columbia, Canada
Relevant
characters
Dziekanski Family
Robert Dziekanski— immigrant from Poland.
Zofia Cisowski— Robert Dziekanski's mother. Lives in Kamloops, BC. Intended to receive Dziekanski at YVR.
Peter Cisowski— husband of Zofia Cisowski and stepfather of Robert Dziekanski. Intended to receive Dziekanski at YVR.
Elzbieta Dubon— common-law wife of Robert Dziekanski, remained in Poland when Dziekanski emmigrated.
Walter Kosteckyi— Dziekanski family lawyer.
Vancouver International Airport
Sima Ashrafinia— witness, filmed brief video of Dziekanski at YVR, also attempted to calm Dziekanski during his crisis.
Paul Pritchard— witness, filmed 10-minute video of Dziekanski's death.
Lorne Meltzer— witness, called RCMP in response to Dziekanski's actions at YVR.
Larry Berg—President of YVR, made statements (first, second).
RCMP
"Four Officers"— the four officers who participated in the October 14 confrontation. Identities unknown, "reassigned" by RCMP after incident.
William J. S. Elliott— Commissioner of the RCMP, made statement.
Gary Bass— RCMP deputy commissioner for the Pacific Region, ordered independent investigation by Ontario Provincial police.
Paul Kennedy— Chairman of the for Committee for Public Complaints Against the RCMP (CPC), presiding over CPC investigation.
Politics
Hon. Stockwell Day— Federal Minister of Public Safety, made statement, called for CPC to conduct review of RCMP use of tasers, recieved interim report on December 12, 2007.
Hon. Gordon Campbell— Prime Minister of British Columbia, made formal apology in BC legislature.
Hon. John Les— Solicitor General of British Columbia, made formal apology in BC legislature, ordered BC Ministry of Public safety to launch investigation.
Hon. Wally Opal— Attorney General of British Columbia, appointed Thomas Braidwood as commissioner of BC government inquiries.
Others
John Gratl— President of the BC Civil Liberties Union, issued formal complaint to Paul Kennedy, to trigger CPC investigation.
Hon. Thomas R. Braidwood—retired justice of the BC Court of Appeals, government-appointed commisisoner of the British Columbia twin inquiries on the death of Dziekanski and the use of tasers in British Columbia.
Email me- jjmccullough@gmail.com