DECIDE WHO SPOKE TRUTH, JURY TOLD

Shank jurors sequestered after six hours

A jury deciding the fate of a Toronto police officer accused of
manslaughter has been told it must decide who is telling the truth about
the night a drug suspect was shot dead by Police.

Today is the second day of deliberations for the jurors in the case of
Detective Constable Rick Shank, who has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter
for unlawfully killing Hugh Dawson, 31, on Easter Sunday last year. The
jury was sequestered last night after deliberating for about six hours.

As part of his final instructions, Mr. Justice Eugene Ewaschuk of the
Ontario Court, general division, outlined three scenarios as to what may
have happened the night Dawson was shot nine times inside his car during a
drug takedown.

All three scenarios involved the movements of Constable Rajeev Sukumaran,
who testified he shot Dawson once after he and Shank struggled violently
with the suspect inside the car.

In the first two situations put to the jury, Ewaschuk said Sukumaran could
have shot Dawson from outside the car and there was no struggle for the
gun. These two versions are consistent with some of the physical evidence.

Shank couldn't argue he feared for his life or Sukumaran's as Dawson would
not have had either of their guns in these two cases, the judge said. The
jury was told it would then have to convict the officer of manslaughter for
using excessive force.

In the third scenario, Sukumaran could have been inside the car, struggling
with Dawson and could have shot the suspect when he heard Dawson had
Shank's gun. Sukumaran would have "miraculously" escaped without getting
hit by a bullet in this version of events, Ewaschuk said.

In this case, the jury would still have to decide whether Shank was
justified in using deadly force, the judge said.

"You should do your best to try and determine who is telling the truth and
who is not," said Ewaschuk, adding the crown's assertion is that the
officers' testimonies followed "a written script."

There was standing room only in the University Ave. courtroom as Ewaschuk
delivered his instructions.

The defence position is that Shank was justified in using deadly force to
try to stop Dawson, who tried to disarm the officers as they went to arrest
him.

Ewaschuk also said the jury should consider Shank may have had "an honest,
mistaken belief" their lives were in danger, "as long as that mistake is
reasonable in light of all the surrounding circumstances."

Dawson's brother, Errol Brown, said outside court he was going to "keep an
open mind" about the case.

Checked-by: Pat Dolan