A 37 year-old Regina male is facing charges after an incident on Saturday, October 31st, 2015 in which a Regina Police Service member discharged a CEW, commonly known as a taser, in an arrest. This advisory is in keeping with the Regina Police Service’s commitment to notify the public each time a CEW is discharged against a person.
At 11:54 p.m. on Saturday, October 31st, 2015, the RPS Communications Centre received a call that a male was causing problems at a residence in 800 block of Retallack Street. Officers arrived in the area and located the male in the 900 block of Athol Street with a butcher knife in his hand. The officers commanded him to drop the knife, but the male ignored their demands. The male walked towards the officers holding the butcher knife beside his head. An officer deployed his Conducted Energy Weapon, or CEW, and it was not effective. A second officer deployed his CEW and the male was safely taken into custody without further incident. EMS attended, as per policy, and treated the suspect at the scene. As the result of the investigation, the male was charged with a weapons offence.
Thirty-seven year-old Walter Mervin DIETER, DOB: 1978/06/13, is charged with “Possession of a Weapon for a Purpose Dangerous to the Public Peace”, section 88 CC. DIETER will make his first court appearance on December 23rd, 2015.
The use of the CEW has been documented as per policy and will be reviewed by a Use of Force Committee – a committee with the Service. All uses of force are also reported to the Saskatchewan Police Commission – an oversight body independent of the Regina Police Service.
