DEBATE HAS ALREADY STARTED

Was this the right police procedure?

Some veterans question why Laval officers had to bash down
door during drug arrests.

Constable Daniel Tessier hadn't spent much time officially on the
Laval police drug squad before he was killed Friday, but it was not
the first time he had been involved in a high-risk police raid.

A police source said Tessier, a 17-year veteran of the Laval force,
was trained in how to execute these procedures and had participated in
numerous raids over the years despite being promoted to the squad only
recently.

But his killing in Brossard is likely to call into question whether
there is a better way to conduct these types of raids, dubbed "dynamic
entrances" by police.

The manoeuvre involves knocking down a door. It's often employed when
trying to take people by surprise in a drug den, says a former police
officer who doesn't think the Brossard raid was conducted in a safe
manner.

"You never use (dynamic entrance) anywhere else. Yes, the SWAT team
may knock down a door, but it's after you've negotiated and the guy
won't come out," the former detective said.

There are alternatives to knocking down a door, he said. One is to
wait for a suspect to emerge from the home and arrest him outdoors.
Another involves surrounding the house, phoning the suspect and simply
getting him to come out.

"Why the hell did they need to take the door down? Especially with his
wife and kids in the house," the ex-cop said.

Officers learn tactical intervention as part of their basic training
at the police academy, but they receive additional training on how to
react during a high-risk raid - training that Tessier had, a source
added.

Another former police officer noted how smoothly the Hells Angels
motorcycle gang was dismantled in 2001 and Mafia members were rounded
up last year.

"SWAT teams weren't always available. It's a regular thing that's done
every day in the police department," said the former cop, who spent
significant time working on narcotics busts.

"But it's easy to play Monday morning quarterback," the retired
officer cautioned. "It all depends on how much emphasis there was on
what (police) thought they'd find in the house."

The Surete du Quebec, which is investigating the shootings, did not
answer questions from The Gazette yesterday.

Basile Parasiris, 41, faces charges of first-degree murder for
Tessier's death and attempted murder for the wounding of another Laval
police officer. His lawyer has claimed he was merely defending his
family.

With a spike in home invasions in recent months, "people get panicky,
and in this particular case, you can add the fact his wife and two
kids are there," said Philip Schneider, a lawyer.

A spokesperson for the Quebec Police Academy in Nicolet and another
for the federation representing police officers in Quebec said they'll
wait for all authorities to conclude their investigations before
advocating any changes to procedure.