Windsor's police chief said he's relieved and anxious to press on after two of his officers were cleared in a fatal shooting.
A day after the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) formally cleared the Windsor Police Service of any wrongdoing in the shooting death of Matthew Mahoney last year outside a downtown fast-food restaurant, Chief Al Frederick expressed sympathy once again to Mahoney's family and friends while emphasizing how these officers' training prepared them for a painful yet instant decision.
"These two officers arrived at a scene...and they had literally seconds between themselves and either serious bodily harm or death," said Frederick. "Seconds in totality. They used force, it was justified and in the legal execution of their duty."
Police had been called to the Wyandotte Street East and Goyeau area shortly after 8 a.m. on March 21, 2018, on a report of a man with a knife block and a number of knives near the drive-thru window of the McDonald's restaurant. The man, later identified as Mahoney, soon became involved in an exchange with multiple officers outside the restaurant. Two of them fired on Mahoney, who died soon after in hospital. The officers were treated in hospital for minor injuries and released.
Mahoney's family said after the shooting that he had been suffering from mental illness much of his life.
When asked by reporters Friday afternoon about the possibility of the family asking for an inquest, Frederick said he welcomed the idea.
"I certainly don't hesitate to support that," said Frederick. "Whatever we can learn, however we can learn it in regards to our response to our community, that's a good thing. I don't know if an inquest is going to be called but if there's is, that's fantastic."
Frederick said the rigorous training his officers undergo can mean the difference between life and death, and this tragedy was no different.
The chief said not a day goes by that the officers involved in the incident do not think about it or have some kind of a reaction to it. He said he met with both officers this week to see how they were holding up, and the chief said it was likely both will be affected by the incident for the rest of their lives.
