The family of Clay Alvin Willey is pressing on with court proceedings against the RCMP for his death while in custody in 2003.
They announced their intentions on Tuesday at the office of their legal counsel Simon Wagstaffe.
"There are a lot of inconsistencies in the treatment of Clay and even more inconsistencies in the investigations into the treatment of Clay [that we have enough material] that we can proceed to trial," said main family spokesperson Yvonne Shuman.
"This is not justice," said Willey's father, Brian, who had to leave the room.
"This is torture and then they murdered him."
He was referring to the report released last week by the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP, which gave a moment-by-moment assessment of the prolonged, violent incident that July day eight years ago. Willey died less than a day after he was first reported to police for causing public disturbances near Parkwood Mall.
The report was the latest in a long list, since Clay's death, of investigations, reports and inquests.
The report told of an extraordinary initial struggle that required multiple police officers and great force to arrest Willey that day. Commissioner Ian McPhail generally accepted that the levels of force used to that point were appropriate given the cocaine-fueled frenzy Willey was in.
However, the tactics used by other police once he got to the Prince George detachment were criticized by McPhail as excessive, unnecessary and against police procedure. He also criticized the RCMP as an organization for its handling of the investigation into the
incident.
The report also underlined the pathologist's findings that none of the police actions led to Willey's death. He died, said the report, of a cocaine overdose but suffered indignities and physical abuse at the hands of then Prince George Mounties who no longer work in the city.
Upon the release of the report, current Prince George police apologized for the mistreatment and admitted to the mistakes named in the document. Supt. Eric Stubbs also reached out for a meeting with the Willey family. That meeting has not occurred but Wagstaffe said Stubbs had called his office.
"I don't ever want to see these guys
[the offending police] do this to someone else," said mother Gloria Willey.
"I want to see the cause of death changed," added sister Bryna Willey. "As far as I am concerned, the police killed him."
The aggravating factors also include a mother under such stress it has made her ill, and a son who was so young when Clay Willey died that "he will only ever know his father through these reports," said Shuman.
Within the next 30 days, said Wagstaffe, more would be disclosed about the family's legal position.
"It is going to be said in a considered fashion," he said.
Law suit not unexpected
The civil action promised by the family of Clay Alvin Willey against the RCMP is in keeping with what police expected throughout the eight years since the fatal incident.
"We have been under that belief," said Prince George RCMP spokesman Cpl. Craig Douglass.
"They had already started that process and, as a result, we can't really say much regarding the case. We can't jeopardize that process by making comments outside of court.
"It is out of local hands at that stage; legal matters are handled by a department outside of Prince George. We in Prince George will have to wait to see the results along with everyone else."
