Town of Wolseley, Sask., lines streets to honour fallen RCMP officer
Const. Shelby Patton killed during traffic stop on Saturday
Around 200 people lined the streets in the town of Wolseley, Sask., on Tuesday to honour an RCMP officer killed on the job. Schools, other locals and people from out of town attended the sombre event.
The RCMP said Saturday that Const. Shelby Patton had been hit by a stolen truck while on duty that morning and died at the scene. Two people face charges including manslaughter and possession of stolen property.
The town had asked people to line the streets as Patton's body was brought back to the funeral home. Students and staff from Wolseley High School were among those who stood waiting. A teacher told CBC News that Patton worked with the school and many students knew him. People from the local elementary school stood near the funeral home for the last leg of the constable's return. The procession ended around 1 p.m. CST.
"He was a very, very good man," Vickey Gosselin said after watching the procession. "He had a ready smile for everybody and he had a beautiful smile. He was well liked by a lot of people."
Gosselin is a commissioner for the Indian Head RCMP detachment and had worked with Patton since he arrived. She said he was young, but mature for his age, and treated everyone with respect.
WATCH | Procession for fallen Mountie:
She said she used to tell Patton to be careful every time he went out.
"The first two days were extremely hard to get around the fact that he was gone," Gosselin said. "It's not fair. It's not fair that such a young man had to go that way and it's just not right."
Gosselin came to the procession to honour her late coworker. Abe Aoun came out to honour his late friend.
"He's very close to everyone in this town," Aoun said. "He called me Uncle Abe. He's always cheering up everybody in town, welcoming everyone. He's a good officer. I'm going to miss him."
Aoun lives in Wolseley and used to live in Indian Head. The two first met around 2015 when he called Patton to discipline his son, he said. His son is now graduating as an RCMP officer.
Aoun drove to Regina early Tuesday morning to print photographs of Patton to give out around town. He said he wants people to remember Patton as the smiling, helpful person he was.
"I know some people, they don't like cops. But don't kill them," he said. "They're humans."
Police say Patton was following a stolen truck when he made a traffic stop in Wolseley. He was approaching on foot when he was struck by the truck, police say. A passerby tried but was unable to resuscitate him.
Police say the two accused fled the scene and were arrested in a farmer's field in the town of Francis before 10 a.m. CST Saturday.
Patton had been a constable with the RCMP for more than six years. He worked at the Indian Head detachment since 2015. Before that he was on assignment at Parliament during February and March 2015.
Lynn Taylor, her daughter Cheryl St. Louis and Taylor's grandchildren came out to the procession dressed in red to honour both Patton and Taylor's family members who are officers. The family is from the nearby town of Grenfell.
"It's a tragedy. Small-town Saskatchewan. This doesn't happen in small-town Saskatchewan. People here are giving and caring people," Taylor said. "To have something this tragic happen to a young man just was overwhelming."
Taylor said officers in small towns are a part of the community. Her family made paper roses and a card for Patton.
"I want our kids to grow up knowing that the police are safe, the police are good," St. Louis said. "The police are just like us. And they work hard, though, to protect us."
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With files from Candice Lipski