Public coroner’s inquest into death of Myles Gray to start Monday
Posted April 16, 2023 8:38 pm.
Last Updated April 17, 2023 6:31 am.
A public coroner’s inquest into the death of Myles Thomas Gray is set to begin on Monday at the Burnaby Coroners’ Court.
Gray, who was 33 years old, died after an interaction with Vancouver Police Department officers in the backyard of a home near the Burnaby and Vancouver border in 2015.
The Independent Investigations Office of BC (IIO) recommended criminal charges against the officers involved, but the BC Prosecution Service ruled there was not enough evidence to approve them.
“It’s very important to distinguish criminal trials from an inquest in that criminal trials are there to…hold someone accountable and find someone guilty or not guilty, whereas [in] an inquest, there are three primary purposes…The first one is to find out what happened,” Emily Delaney, a criminal defense lawyer, said.
“It’s essentially the public’s opportunity to determine or to see what the facts are, and to essentially determine what the cause of death was, whether it was accidental, whether it was a homicide, whether it was just undetermined…The second purpose is for the jury to make recommendations.”
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Delaney adds that an inquest’s jury typically consists of five to seven jurors.
“It’s not to find someone or an organization accountable. The overarching purpose is preventative in nature, and so these jurors make recommendations based on the evidence that they received during the inquest,” she said.
“The final purpose, as set out by the BC Coroners Service, is to satisfy the community that the circumstances surrounding the death of one of its members will not be overlooked, concealed or ignored. So it’s really to shine a light on what actually happened here,” she explained.
In light of the inquest, Gray’s family and supporters are set to hold a “support rally” Monday morning.
The rally is scheduled for 8:00 a.m. at Metrotown.
With files from Cole Schisler and Charlie Carey
