Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette refuses to order an independent inquiry into the death of Koray Kevin Celik, a 28-year-old man who died in front of his parents during a police intervention that went wrong in March 2017.
The family of the young man has been demanding for weeks that an investigation be carried out by an independent committee to review the decision of the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DPCP) not to bring criminal charges against the four police officers involved in this tragedy.
Coroner Luc Malouin had concluded, in a report made public at the end of April 2023, that the intervention of the police played a “determining role” in the death of Koray Kevin Celik.
This evening in March 2017, the young man was intoxicated after consuming alcohol and drugs at the family home, in L’Île-Bizard, in the west of Montreal. When he wanted to go to the pharmacy to buy sleeping pills, his parents had called 911 in the hope of avoiding their son taking his car.
Koray Kevin Celik was sitting in his bed when police officers from the Montreal City Police Department (SPVM) arrived, his parents said Monday at a press conference. A female officer confronted him and three other officers intervened. The young man was tackled to the ground, then handcuffed, and he lost consciousness. His death was pronounced at the hospital.
“My wife and I were direct witnesses to the murder of our son. Despite this, our story was not taken into consideration by the authorities [le Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes et le DPCP] said Cesur Celik, the victim’s father, on Monday.
“We were not believed by these investigators, but the police were. We were eyewitnesses,” he added.
Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette confirmed his refusal to set up an independent investigation in a letter to parents dated June 5, 2023.
“Although the Minister is sensitive to your situation, the Department of Justice Act specifies that the Minister is the legal adviser to the government. For this reason, he cannot take a position in a dispute of a private nature”, indicates the Office of the quality of the services of the ministry of Justice.
A precedent in 2014
The parents’ lawyer, Virginie Dufresne-Lemire, argues that nothing prevents the minister from mandating an independent committee to review the decision of the DPCP. “The law on the Ministry of Justice and the law on the DPCP have provisions allowing the establishment of such a committee,” she insisted.
An independent committee was thus formed in November 2014 following the death of a 5-year-old child in a collision involving a police officer who was spinning at high speed. Initially, the DPCP decided not to lay criminal charges against police officer Patrick Ouellet.
The Minister of Justice at the time, Stéphanie Vallée, had formed a special committee to review all the evidence following a report that revealed new facts. Dangerous driving charges were eventually filed against the officer, who was convicted in 2018.
“The Quebec Court of Appeal concluded that the establishment of an external committee is not illegal and constitutes a useful administrative measure to achieve the objectives of the DPCP. This example demonstrates that the DPCP is not infallible [et] that errors can sometimes occur, ”said Ms.e Dufresne-Lemire.