New Brunswick coroner's jury says 2020 police killing of Rodney Levi was a homicide

Photo: The Canadian Press

A coroner's jury in New Brunswick examining the 2020 fatal police shooting of Rodney Levi has ruled his death a homicide.

The 48-year-old man from the Metepenagiag First Nation was shot dead by RCMP in Sunny Corner, N.B., on June 12, 2020, after officers responded to a complaint about a man with knives at a home.

The five-member jury issued a long list of recommendations today, including to reinstate the Indigenous band constable program and to locate detox centres in First Nations communities.

Jurors are recommending that RCMP officers not be first responders during wellness checks, but should be on standby.

The jury is also calling for greater suicide intervention training for the RCMP and for the acceleration of programs across the country to equip officers with body cameras.

The shooting was investigated by Quebec's police watchdog, the Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes, and New Brunswick prosecutors determined the officers on the scene believed Levi was using force against them and were justified in killing him.

Coroner John Evans told the jury Thursday they had to decide whether Levi's death was a homicide, a suicide or whether neither could be determined.

The jury heard from 27 people over five days of testimony.