Tracey Matters hopes a coroner's inquest will settle some unanswered questions about the death of her brother last year.
Greg Matters was shot to death by a member of the RCMP's emergency response team on Sept. 10, 2012 after a lengthy standoff with police at the family's property in Pineview.
"Why is my beloved brother, a kind and gentle man who served his country and who stood for fairness and justice, dead?" Tracey wrote in an email from Australia where she works in government. "At this stage we are no closer to learning what really happened and we hope that through the inquest we have our many questions answered."
Greg, who was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) stemming from his time in the Canadian military, was approaching police officers with a hatchet in hand when he was shot twice in the chest. The situation began a day earlier when a family dispute escalated and police wanted to arrest Greg for uttering threats against his brother.
The coroner's inquest, set for Oct. 7-11 at the Prince George courthouse, is tasked with looking at the events leading to Matters' death and find ways to make sure they aren't repeated.
Among the questions Tracey hopes the inquest will answer is why the police didn't make accommodation for someone suffering from PTSD and why Greg's doctor and family members weren't allowed to speak with him during the crisis.
"Why did the RCMP fatally shoot a man on his own property who didn't have a firearm and who had agreed to be taken into the police station over a minor domestic dispute?" Tracey wrote.
At one point during the incident Greg's mother was handcuffed and Tracey is hopeful the inquest will look at that part of the police procedure as well.
An investigation by the Independent Investigations Office cleared the police officers involved of any criminal wrongdoing.
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