Mike on Crime

By James Turner
Winnipeg Free Press

Witnesses of an apparent drunk-driving accident in Charleswood say a former Winnipeg police officer removed his 20-year-old son from the scene before police arrived, only to return a few minutes later to speak with police without him.

The crash happened around 3 a.m. Thursday on a quiet street in Charleswood. It appears speed was a factor as the car driven by the man’s son careened through ditches, smashed into a tree and damaged a parked van before coming to a stop between 602 and 606 Charleswood Rd.

One area resident who rushed out of her home to see what happened said the 20-year-old crawled out of the crashed Oldsmobile Alero sedan with a gash over one eye and kept asking to use a phone to call his father.

“All I heard him say was ‘Does anybody have a phone? I need to call my dad, I need to call my dad,’” the resident said, adding he sounded scared, but was not slurring his speech.

Guy Powell, who lives at 606 Charleswood Rd. offered the use of his cordless phone, and the man phoned his father.

Powell said that the man appeared agitated, but not necessarily intoxicated. He had no trouble dialing the phone, Powell said in an interview in front of his damaged yard Friday. The man definitely told him that his father was a policeman, Powell said.

A few minutes passed before the retired police officer pulled up in a dark-coloured truck and ushered his son inside, despite the protestations of witnesses.

“He said to the kid, ‘Get in,’ and the other people on the street were saying, ‘Wait a minute — you can’t leave, the police are on their way,’ and he said, ‘I’ll be back, I’m going to come back,” said an area resident.

At no time did the retired officer announce he was a former member of the police service, witnesses say. He came back and talked with officers on scene a few minutes after leaving.

Still, many who witnessed the incident are questioning the ex-officer’s removal of his son from the scene.

“If he is a (former) police officer, he knew if he got his kid out of that area that probably they couldn’t even come into the house to get a breathalyser. He could be charged with leaving the scene of an accident and avoid the rest of it,” the resident said.

Police would not confirm that the former officer took his son from the scene, only that he is a retired member of the police service.

Police said they took the 20-year-old into custody and released him on a promise to appear in court on a later date. They did not identify him as the charges have not been formally laid. Charges of impaired driving, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and leaving the scene of an accident are pending.

Const. Jason Michalyshen said the investigation is ongoing, and other charges could be laid.

“Any other aspect of this investigation will be investigated thoroughly, we’re taking it very seriously and if there are any other offenses deemed as a result of that investigation, we will follow through.”

Michalyshen said the charges could be formally announced in the coming weeks. He’s facing offenses such as driving impaired and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle as well as leaving the scene of an accident.

There is some evidence, however, that the man may have been suffering from complications from having diabetes. Powell said police at the scene told him the ex-officer rushed his son home so that another family member could take him to hospital. Concerns were also raised about an insulin pump the man may have had, Powell said.

Kevin Fifer, another resident, said insulin was found in the Alero and that he also heard suggestions the man was taken to hospital.

Police couldn’t say definitively if the retired officer took the son from the scene because of a medical emergency or if the 20-year-old was treated in hospital.

“It appears in this particular case (he) needed some medical treatment,” Michalyshen said, adding it’s common to deal with medical issues first if someone’s been injured.

“As far as medical treatment, if an individual requires it, that’s what’s going to take place whether it involves (officers) or not.”

The investigation continues.