The BC Coroners Service will hold an inquest into the police-involved death of Whistlerite Jason Koehler, who died after being arrested at a village restaurant in early 2020.
Koehler, 47, who owned smoking accessories shop 2 Guys with Pipes, died March 8, 2020 after police were called to respond to a disturbance at Stonesedge Kitchen on the Village Stroll. Officers reportedly struggled to control Koehler, who resisted arrest, and over the course of the incident, deployed a taser six times, used pepper spray, batons, and physical blows to subdue him, according to a 2021 independent investigation that cleared the RCMP of any wrongdoing.
Starting Dec. 2 at the Burnaby Coroner’s Court, presiding coroner Kimberly Isbister and a jury will hear evidence from witnesses to determine the facts surrounding the death. While the jury will have the opportunity to make recommendations aimed at preventing deaths under similar circumstances, it will not make any finding of legal responsibility or express any conclusion of law, according to a release from the BC Coroners Service.
A coroner’s inquest is mandatory for any death that occurs while a person is detained by or in the custody of a peace officer, and where the public has an interest in being informed. The public can virtually attend the inquest via livestream. Reproduction, broadcasting and publishing of inquest proceedings, including through social media, is prohibited. The proceedings start at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 2.
To access the livestream, click here.
The circumstances around Koehler’s death were laid out in an October 2021 decision by police watchdog, the Independent Investigations Office of BC (IIO), which ultimately ruled Whistler RCMP officers did not use excessive force in Koehler’s death.
“There is no suggestion that any of those uses of force caused or contributed to [Koehler’s] death—or indeed caused any significant injury,” IIO chief civilian director Ronald J. MacDonald wrote in his ruling.
An autopsy found Koehler’s heart was enlarged, while toxicology testing discovered cocaine, methamphetamine, THC metabolite and naloxone in his system. A pathologist named Koehler’s cause of death as the combined effect of drug toxicity, dilated cardiomyopathy, and struggle during physical restraint.
According to the IIO report, Stonesedge staff and patrons reportedly grew concerned by Koehler’s increasingly “abnormal and erratic” behaviour shortly after he sat down at the restaurant’s bar that morning. Three officers attended the call shortly after 11 a.m., and the encounter soon grew physical after Koehler reportedly “snatched” an ID from one officer’s hand.
CCTV footage captured a “violent struggle” that rendered all three officers unable to maintain control of Koehler, and in one instance, dislocated an officer’s shoulder. That officer deployed a taser the first time, which appeared ineffective, the report said.
Koehler refused officers' orders to lay on the ground, and, according to cellphone footage, could be heard responding, “I can’t, it’ll kill me.”
The footage also showed Koehler at one point holding his arms out and gesturing toward the exit, saying, “Hold me like this. I will walk.” The injured officer told the IIO he was unwilling to re-engage physically with Koehler, given his unpredictability.
A taser was deployed again, also to no noticeable effect, when Koehler walked toward two of the officers. The report said he “forcefully” overturned furniture in their direction before a fourth officer arrived on the scene.
One of the initial attending officers deployed pepper spray in Koehler’s direction, as he continued to resist orders, the report said. The fourth officer on scene deployed two more taser rounds on Koehler. The report said Koehler began “wriggling across the floor” toward officers, prompting police to taser him two more times, failing to result in a “noticeable change” in his behaviour.
The fourth officer decided to try and gain physical control of Koehler, grabbing one arm while a colleague grabbed the other. Though Koehler initially appeared passive, his attempts to start fighting again were met with several blows. As the struggle continued, officers and eyewitnesses said Koehler twice reached for and grabbed cutlery. Partially obstructed footage shows one officer punching Koehler's torso, and another striking "repeatedly" with a baton in the direction of Koehler's legs.
After wrestling a fork away from Koehler, officers managed to move his wrists behind his back and place them in handcuffs. Although initially responsive, Koehler soon “went limp,” according to the fourth officer. Concerned by his unresponsiveness, the officer rolled Koehler into the recovery position, checking his pulse and airway before calling paramedics.
The IIO said police performed CPR until first responders arrived. Koehler was transported to hospital, where he was declared dead.
Based on the available evidence, which included statements from 32 civilian witnesses, six first responders, the four attending officers, as well as CCTV and cellphone footage, MacDonald concluded police acted “lawfully, in execution of their duty.”
A June 2020 civil suit filed in B.C. Supreme Court by Koehler’s family took a much different position, alleging police used “extreme and excessive force while performing their unlawful arrest.”
The suit contended the initial attending officers resorted to physical force “with limited efforts to de-escalating the situation and no reason to believe bodily harm to anyone was imminent.”
The claim also alleged that Koehler, who had a history of mental-health issues, was not violent with the attending officers, was unarmed, and communicated “his willingness to peacefully leave the restaurant, while raising his hands above his head and placing them in front of his body” to be handcuffed.
Koehler was also involved in an April 2015 police incident that reportedly required seven officers to restrain him. He was sentenced the following month on charges of assault and resisting a peace officer.
-With files from Megan Lalonde
