The father of a man who killed himself while surrounded by RCMP officers says he still doesn’t know why police didn’t act sooner to save his son’s life.
Kenneth Ivall said he does not understand why it took over five hours for police to enter the staff accommodation unit of his son Kevin three years ago.
“That is one thing I didn’t understand,” Ivall said last week in an interview with the Outlook. “They say they had time on their side, but how much time did my son have? It is something that bothers me.”
Kevin Ivall was found dead in the bathroom of a unit at the Banff Boundary Lodge on June 14, 2008.
However, testimony at a fatality inquiry held last week in Calgary in front of Judge Catherine Skene revealed a distractionary explosive device police used during the incident could have endangered the 31-year-old’s life.
Dr. Graeme Dowling, Chief Medical Examiner for the province of Alberta, said while the cause of death was ligature strangulation, he also found a significant wound on Kevin Ivall’s abdomen.
“The wound appears to be the result of a distractionary explosive device,” Dowling said. “If this gentleman had been alive when the device was used, the injury he received could have caused his death.”
Ivall said he would like the judge to make recommendations limiting the size of room in which police can deploy distractionary devices.
The explosion was so powerful it blew the door to the washroom off its hinges.
“I cannot see why that was thrown in a room that is six-by-six,” said the Lake St-John, Quebec resident. “If he would have been alive they would have killed him.”
Ivall said RCMP should have contacted himself or his wife during the five-hour standoff to talk to their son and help him.
He pointed out the hotel had their contact information in case of an emergency.
“We could have helped,” he said. “Any parent can talk to their kid and calm them down to open the door.”
The inquiry heard that since the 2008 incident the RCMP has changed its policy for dealing with individuals in distress by contacting friends, family or support in the person’s life for help.
Ivall said he is also bothered by information presented at the inquiry that the hotel had terminated his employment and were evicting him from staff accommodation without notice.
Testimony revealed Ivall’s son phoned 911 to request RCMP assist him because of the eviction.
At the time, Ivall told police he had taken drugs the night before when partying with friends and needed time to come down. Methamphetamine, codeine and by-products of cocaine use were found in his blood.
He threatened to kill himself if police entered the two-bedroom unit, but repeatedly stated he did not intend to hurt others.
The manager of the hotel also called police after entering the unit and said Ivall threatened to harm himself with a kitchen knife.
Cpl. Sherrie Brunelle, with the forensic investigation section of the RCMP, said a knife was also found hidden in a pile of blankets at the front door of the hotel unit.
Const. Michael Evans investigated the incident for the RCMP as part of the major crimes unit out of Lethbridge.
“I basically felt, based on the evidence, the cause of death to Mr. Ivall was not through any actions the RCMP had been involved in,” Evans said.
He testified the hotel room was barricaded from the inside and that fact led local RCMP officers to call the Emergency Response Team (ERT) in from Calgary.
Constables Enrique Ortega and Tim Dieble and Cpl. Laura Akitt all testified at the inquiry as to why members did not enter the unit right away.
“Any time you have someone who states they are willing to take their life, especially with a weapon, it is a high risk situation for police officers,” Ortega said. “Another big concern is our training does not include entering barricaded situations; that’s why we called the Emergency Response Team.”
Akitt said once the ERT was called it was the responsibility of Canmore members to contain the situation until they arrived.
“At that point, we are still doing continual risk assessment,” she said. “It was not viable to enter; we wanted him to come out to us.”
Testimony also revealed police were incorrectly informed the man had two shotguns and a rifle registered.
Diebold said he spent the morning negotiating over the phone with Ivall to exit the room, but lost contact with him around 1 p.m. and ERT members entered the unit at 3:25 p.m.
“I seemed to be able to relate to him,” he said. “He wanted a little bit more time, but he agreed with me he would come out and we discussed how he would.”
Diebold said Ivall kept asking for another half hour and the last time he spoke with him over the phone he remained optimistic the situation would end peacefully.
Trained RCMP negotiator Inspector Lawrence Aimoe guided Diebold by phone.
He said depending on the type of person you are dealing with and the situation, a negotiator wants to have a way to create rapport with the person in crisis.
Aimoe said from the information he received, Ivall fit into the category of an expressive person who was at high risk of harming himself.
“With expressive people we are trained that time is on our side. As long as he is talking there is no rush.”
He also said when a person barricades themselves it raises concern.
“One thing you have to be concerned about with a barricaded person is if they are doing that to slow us down so they can get the upper hand and are lying in wait.”
The purpose of a fatality inquiry in Alberta is to establish identity, date, time, place and cause of death, and as well as examine the circumstances.
The judge may make recommendations to prevent similar situations, but is prohibited from determining legal responsibility.
Because Ivall was surrounded by police officers, including over 10 ERT, and alone at the time of his death, it was considered to occur in custody and is subject to an inquiry.
Inquiry findings will be released at a later date.
