N.S. Mountie cleared in shooting faced 'very real and deadly threat,' SIRT rules

A Nova Scotia RCMP officer used reasonable force in response to "a very real and deadly threat" when he fired four shots from his firearm, striking and injuring a man in Pictou Landing First Nation, the province's police watchdog has found.

In a report released Friday, the Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT) said it found no reasonable grounds to believe the officer committed a criminal offence during the incident on Jan. 1.

The report said two officers were called to a domestic disturbance at a home after a man armed with a knife allegedly threatened to harm himself and others.

At one point, the man "emerged from a residence with his hands in the front pockets of his sweater" and ran toward the officers, the report said.

One officer fired four shots, striking the man's chest, arm and thigh. The other officer discharged his Taser. 

The report said the officers administered first aid at the scene until paramedics arrived. The man was taken to hospital where he underwent surgery. He has since recovered, the report said.

SIRT director Erin Nauss said in the report she was satisfied the officer who fired the shots "acted to deter a reasonably apprehended threat."

"The circumstantial evidence supports the perception of the [officer] that there were reasonable grounds to believe the threat to his own life and the life of [the second officer] was imminent," wrote Nauss.