A year after police killed Hudson Brooks, his family still waits for answers
Hudson Brooks was shot dead by a police officer near the south Surrey RCMP detachment on July 18, 2015
Every day, Jennifer Brooks says she wakes up hoping someone will explain to her why a police officer shot and killed her son, Hudson, near the south Surrey RCMP detachment almost exactly one year ago.
But every day for the last year, Brooks has gone to sleep disappointed.
"July 18, 2015 is when we lost our boy and it was the hardest day of my life," she said.
"It was such a shock, and I still can't get over the shock of losing Hudson. It is just unbearable at times without Hudson."
Few details
Hudson Brooks, 20, was gunned down in south Surrey near 152 Street and 18th Avenue.
At the time, police said they received a call about a man in distress at about 2:30 a.m. PT.
There was a confrontation and police shot Hudson Brooks several times.
Andrea Taggart, who lives in the area, says she heard a man screaming, "They're going to kill me!"
Then, Taggart says she heard the sound of six or seven gunshots.
An officer was also shot during the altercation.
No other details have been released.
Why the delay?
The Independent Investigations Office says it is still waiting for a third party ballistics report to be completed.
"Pending receipt of this report, no definitive completion date can be set at this time," the IIO said in emailed statement.
"In consultation with the third party, the IIO is working to expedite the report because we understand these cases are taking too long to be resolved."
The IIO says its current caseload, which currently sits at 60 open files, is a challenge.
Time for change
When the investigation is completed, the Brooks family would like to have a discussion about how the system can be improved.
"I would like to sit down and talk about how there are huge, huge changes that need to be made," Jennifer Brooks said.
"You cannot leave families in the dark for a year. Not to know anything is absolutely agonizing."
B.C. NDP Justice Critic Mike Farnworth says he plans to raise the issue in the Legislature when it resumes sitting.
"I think there needs to be better communication with the family to let them know what's going on," Farnworth said.
"I think we could be doing a lot more in terms of giving them information, or at least a timeline of when they can expect answers because, quite frankly, a year is far too long."
A memorial to Brooks near the site where he was killed has been immaculately kept by friends and family.
There will be a candlelight vigil there on Monday night.