Bush Family Calls for Change

By 250 News

For the second time in less than a year there is a call for an independant body to investigate the police.

The call comes from the Lawyer for the family of Ian Bush, the 22 year old Houstan  man shot to death in custody last October. 

The family's lawyer, Howard Rubin says there needs to be transparency.  Rubin says his office has been inundated with calls from private citizens expressing  support for independant investigations when police are at the core of the case.   "It appears to me the public has lost confidence in the process". 

He says there are concerns about the transparency of the criminal investigation.  Rubin is not going to comment on  Attorney General Wally Oppal's comments  following the Crown's decision not to lay charges against the officer involved, a decision based on evidence gathered by the RCMP. 

Attorney General Wally Oppal  spoke about the case publicly saying the officer in question  feared for his life,  and the shooting was an act of self defence.

Oppal hasn't actually reviewed the  entire file, he was speaking  after having been briefed.   His comments  caught the Bush family off guard ""He did a really bad thing" says Ian's sister Renee "As a lawyer, former Judge, and now the Attorney General, he should know that it is not appropriate to speak about evidence in a case.  We still have the Coroner's inquest which has a jury." She adds "Its disheartening to hear someone say things when you  know, they should know better."

The dates for the inquest have not yet been set. 

The Bush family has also named Oppal and Constable Paul Koester in a civil suit. 

In November of last year, just a couple of weeks following Ian's death, the  B.C. Civil Liberties Association  called for an independant  civilian investigation of the case. (see full story) 

The officer in question, Paul Koester  had only been  on the force for five months at the time of the shooting.  He had been sent to Houston just four days  after graduation from  Depot.  Before joining the RCMP, he had been a Conservation Officer in Pierceland Saskatchewan.

Ian's mother, Linda Bush says there also needs to be a review  of recruitment and  training.  "I know that for  Renee (trianing to be an RN) she has to be supervised  and  have hours and hours of practicum before she will  be able to  go it alone.  There are  lots of professions which call for  that  kind of training."

The first anniversary of Ian's death is closing in.  Renee doesn't know how they will go through that day. As for Ian's mother Linda " You just have to deal with things as they come, you can't make any long term plans, but the hardest part,  is Ian being gone."

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