Two Vancouver police constables may not face a public hearing to review their conduct in a January 2010 arrest that left an East Side man seriously injured in a case of so-called mistaken identity.
Constables Bryan London and Nicholas Florkow are awaiting a B.C. Supreme Court ruling on whether Police Complaint Commissioner Stan Lowes decision to order a public hearing for March 12 was warranted.
That ruling could come anytime, according to Kevin Woodall, the lawyer acting on behalf of the constables in the legal challenge that was last heard in court Nov. 24.
He said he was hoping to get it out within two or three weeks, Woodall said of B.C. Supreme Court Justice D. Allan Bettons pending ruling. If we are successful, there wont be a public hearing.
The case involves Yao Wei Wu, whose injuries on the early morning of Jan. 21, 2010 included a broken orbital bone. Wu, a floor installer, suffered the injuries before police realized he was not the culprit in a domestic assault call to Wus house on Lanark Street.
The constables responded to the correct address but were not aware the call, which came from a cellphone, originated from the Wu's basement suite, where a man was later arrested in connection with the domestic assault.
That was a finding in the Delta Polices investigation of the incident, which cleared the constables of any wrongdoing, despite the officers admitting to hitting Wu five times in the back with closed-handed tactical strikes. Wus face made contact with concrete when he was taken to the ground, the investigation added.
Lowe wasnt satisfied with the conclusion announced by Delta Police Chief Jim Cessford in November 2010 and ordered a public hearing.
Lowe alleged in a written statement that London and Florkow committed an abuse of their authority in the performance of their duties and intentionally or recklessly used unnecessary force.
Lowe also said flaws existed in the investigation but didnt provide details, according to Woodall, who argued his point in a petition filed in court as part of the legal challenge.
The police complaint commissioner has never specified any flaws in the investigation, Woodall wrote. There were, in fact, no material flaws in the investigation. It was patently unreasonable of the police complaint commissioner to claim that there were flaws in the investigation.
In addition, Woodall said, Lowe could have appointed a retired judge to review the decision of the Delta Police instead of ordering a hearing. This option is spelled out in the Police Act.
I think the decision of the Delta police chief was correct, Woodall told the Courier, arguing the Delta investigation was thorough and included dispatch recordings of that night. Our perception is that Stan Lowe simply disagreed with the result.
Rollie Woods, deputy police complaint commissioner, said his agency believes it has a strong case for ordering the hearing. Woods said the complaint commissioners office is looking forward to the judges ruling, which will test Lowes ability to order future public hearings.
Were eager to get an answer so that we can get to an outcome on this and on some of the other cases that are open, Woods said. We think weve got a pretty good case, otherwise we probably wouldnt be fighting it.
Lawyer Cameron Ward, acting on behalf of Wu, was unavailable for comment before the Couriers deadline. Ward has called the Delta police investigation of the Wu case a farce and a whitewash.
Wu has refused media requests for interviews because of the court battle. He issued a written statement after the Delta Polices decision was announced, saying he was disappointed and angry at the findings.
This is absolutely a distortion of the facts, wrote Wu, who has also launch a lawsuit against the VPD, stating the officers grabbed him, dragged him outside and repeatedly beat him.
Bill Chu belonged to a group of people who held several press conferences after Wu was injured to raise concerns about the conduct of the police officers in question.
Chu said he last spoke to Wu 10 days ago. He wouldnt comment on Wus health but said Wu was disappointed the officers lawyer is attempting to quash the public hearing.
Hes very upset, he said, noting Wus fight for justice has dragged on for almost two years. The whole thing has been nothing but delay and delay and delay of justice. Theyre pulling everything out of the book to stop an innocent party from getting some justice.
Twitter: @Howellings
