The coroner's inquest into the death of Greg Matters turned towards the Independent Investigations Office on Wednesday as the lawyer representing the mother and sister of the military veteran raised concerns about the subsequent criminal investigation.
In particular, lawyer Cameron Ward concentrated on a hatchet investigators found at the scene following Matters' Sept. 10, 2012 death after an RCMP emergency response team member shot him dead on his family's Pineview property.
In earlier testimony, the inquest heard Matters pulled out the hatchet and was waving it above his head when the ERT tried to arrest him on assault charges about 40 hours after he had run his brother off the road.
But in Ward's cross examination of Rob Stutt, the chief investigator sent in by the IIO, a civilian-led police watchdog, to handle the case, the inquest heard no fingerprints were found on the hatchet and, although swabs were taken, it was not tested for DNA.
The inquest also heard that Sept. 10 was the first day of operation for the IIO and the evidence at the scene was subsequently collected by the North District RCMP forensic identification section under IIO supervision.
Stutt agreed with Ward that no forensic evidence linking Matters to the hatchet was found and that the only evidence the IIO had about the hatchet was what ERT members told investigators.
Later in the day, when questioned by RCMP lawyer Andrew Kemp, Stutt described the hatchet's handle as rough, porous and it had laid under a tarp at the scene for about 15 hours before it was taken away, suggesting that getting a fingerprint would be unlikely.
A sheath for the hatchet also found at the scene, was made out of a woven nylon fabric, "not a smooth surface," Stutt said.
Asked by Kemp if there was any evidence that refuted Matters' connection to the hatchet, Stutt said there was none.
Ward also noted discrepancies in statements the ERT members gave about which hand Matters used to hold the hatchet, with one saying it was his right hand, one saying his left and two saying they were not sure.
Questioned by Kemp, Stutt said that statements from three of the ERT members were obtained the next day but agreed, as opposed to getting them as soon as possible, there is a school of thought that it's better to wait "because the memory improves after time."
The IIO had to wait 11 days until receiving a written statement from Cpl. Collin Warwick, who shot Matters and said the ex-soldier was holding the hatchet in his right hand, which his mother testified was his dominant hand.
Because Warwick was the prime candidate for criminal charges, he had the right to consult a lawyer, Stutt said, and noted Warwick had called him to say he was eager to provide a statement but was concerned about how it was to be delivered, refusing to send it by e-mail or secure facsimile.
On Sept. 21, 2012, Prince George RCMP Supt. Eric Stubbs handed Warwick's statement to Stutt at the Vancouver Airport. It was a Saturday, and Stubbs was flying through to Edmonton on a personal matter, the inquest heard.
Stutt agreed with Ward that 19 followup questions were drafted after the response was received, but they were never put to Warwick. Coroner T.E. Chico Newell denied Ward's request to submit the questions as evidence finding they were not relevant to the inquest's purpose.
As for a discrepancy between a pathologist's testimony during the inquest that Matters was shot in the back and the IIO's conclusion he was shot in the chest, Stutt read the last line from the pathologist's report that said the "cause of death was wounds to the chest."
Eight months after Matters' death, the IIO cleared the RCMP of any criminal wrongdoing.
Kemp, IIO lawyer Henry Waldock and coroners' lawyer Rodrick Mackenzie continually raised objections to Ward's line of questioning throughout the day, arguing the inquest's role was not to reopen the IIO's investigation but to try to determine the causes of Matters' death and make recommendations to prevent similar events in the future.
The coroner Newell agreed.
"The focus of this inquest is the circumstances surrounding the death of Greg Matters, it is not a test of the effectiveness of the IIO," Newell said.
Many of those attending the inquest disagreed. Matters' friends and family have made up the majority of the 25 or so who have attended the inquest each day this week and most believe the RCMP were in the wrong.
During breaks in the inquest, about a handful of Matters' friends and family have been standing outside the courthouse wearing placards saying "Justice for Greg Matters."
Matters' sister Tracey contends an independent party should review the IIO investigation.
