Former cop didn't know intoxicated native man was homeless, inquiry told

A former Vancouver police officer told an inquiry into the death of Frank Paul that he believed Paul had a place to go after being released from a drunk tank almost 10 years ago.

Russell Sanderson, who was in charge of the Vancouver jail the night Paul was left in the alley where he later died, was under cross-examination Tuesday.

The retired sergeant denied knowing that Paul was homeless, even though Paul's numerous arrest sheets contained the words "no fixed address."

"He had some place of shelter — whether it be a basement suite, an apartment, some place to go where he would be out of the elements and taken care of," Sanderson told the inquiry.

Paul, a former resident of the Big Cove First Nation in New Brunswick, died on Dec. 5, 1998, of hypothermia because of exposure due to alcohol intoxication.

A police video recording shown at the inquiry last November showed a limp Paul being dragged into an elevator at the police station the second time he arrived there, his wet clothes leaving a mark on the floor.

Sanderson told the inquiry Tuesday he asked an officer to drive Paul to an intersection in the neighbourhood where he believed the man lived.

Sanderson testified it was his decision to release Paul from custody to uphold the man's charter rights and because he believed Paul was sober enough to make his way home from the intersection, even if he couldn't walk very well.

"He could get around if he had the assistance of the wall or something else like that," Sanderson told the inquiry.