2 families consider legal action against Calgary police, alleging excessive force led to deaths
CBC News | Posted: January 30, 2017 3:31 PM | Last Updated: January 30, 2017
Jessica Patterson was killed by CPS officer, while her husband died of apparent overdose 3 weeks later
Two families are considering legal action against Calgary police, alleging that excessive force led to the death of their loved ones.
The case stems from an incident in November when 27-year-old Jessica Patterson was shot and killed by a CPS officer in the downtown neighbourhood of Sunalta.
Police allege she was armed with two knives and acting erratically when the officer opened fire.
Her husband, Joseph Larson, appears to have taken his own life less than a month later.
Lisa Larson said it appeared her younger brother couldn't get over the death of his wife.
"He was completely devastated, he was heartbroken," she said. "He loved her to the moon and back."
Couple died 3 weeks apart
He was found dead in an apparent overdose in December, five days before Christmas. The family is still waiting on toxicology reports.
His death happened just three weeks after his wife's.
"I had contact with him pretty well every day, just trying to make sure he was OK and get him through it," Larson said. "It's very shocking that he passed as well."
The Larson and Patterson families have now retained a lawyer to find out exactly what happened the night Patterson was killed.
"We just want to know what happened. We want to have a clearer picture and gathering information is one way to get a clearer picture," Larson said.
Police have said that on the night Patterson died, she was "banging on car windows and building doors, carrying two knives, one in each hand," according to the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT), which is investigating.
An officer who had been on the force for one year fired her gun "to protect herself, her partner and the public," police Chief Roger Chaffin said at a news conference in November.
Calgary police say they can't comment on any potential civil action while the ASIRT investigation is ongoing.
"There certainly appears to be a number of questions that need to be answered," said Clint Docken, the family's lawyer.
"Hopefully the truth will come out through the litigation process."