A Calgary police officer, Const. Craig Stothard, has been charged with two counts of second-degree murder following the shooting deaths of the occupants of a van during a slow-speed pursuit on May 29, 2023. The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) announced the charges in a news release on Tuesday, indicating that the officer is currently on leave from the police service.
The incident began when police responded to a report of suspicious individuals on private property. The suspects fled in a stolen cube van, which was later observed driving erratically on Memorial Drive. Video footage showed multiple police vehicles pursuing the van at a crawling pace, and police suggested that “rapidly changing dynamics” prompted one officer to discharge their firearm at the van’s occupants.
ASIRT reported that two of the van's occupants were struck by gunfire and later pronounced dead. While the exact circumstances leading to the shooting remain undisclosed as the case is currently in court, ASIRT stated that their investigation uncovered reasonable grounds to believe that criminal offenses had been committed by the officer involved.
Const. Stothard was charged on Monday and appeared in court the following day. He has since been released on bail with specific conditions. His attorney, Don MacLeod, affirmed that Stothard maintains his innocence and intends to mount a vigorous defense in court.
At the time of the incident, Const. Stothard had 13 years of service with the Calgary Police Service. In their official statement, Calgary police expressed their understanding of the gravity of the charges and acknowledged the potential erosion of community trust resulting from such events. They offered condolences to the victims’ families and committed to learning from the incident.
The victims have been identified as Wesley Davidson, aged 46, and Levon Boyce Fox, aged 39. A third individual in the vehicle, Dennis Wildman, who is the brother of Levon Fox, was uninjured and taken into custody. The family of Levon Fox expressed relief at the charges being laid after enduring “two years of grief, questions, and personal suffering” they attributed to what they have termed police brutality.
Lena Wildman, Fox’s mother, emphasized the need for accountability, insisting that the officer responsible for her son’s death should not receive preferential treatment in the judicial system. She also highlighted the ongoing mental health struggles experienced by Dennis Wildman after the traumatic event.
The Fox family expressed their intention to see the judicial process through to its conclusion, advocating for the intolerability of unjustified police actions against Indigenous individuals within Canadian policing. They are determined to pursue justice as they navigate the legal proceedings ahead.
This incident has raised significant concerns regarding police conduct and accountability, further igniting discussions about the treatment of Indigenous people by law enforcement agencies across Canada. The case continues to unfold as it moves through the courts, with both community and legal stakeholders closely monitoring developments.
