Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.
Jon Wells, 42, of Alberta’s southern blood tribe has been identified as the man who died in the custody of the Calgary Police Service last week.
Wells is remembered as a kind man who was an accomplished bull wrestler.
“A very gentle man who was dedicated to the community and his family, and to his hobby of rodeo, I will say – he was a role model in that,” said Eugene Creighton with the Indian National Rodeo Finals (INRF).
Wells was the 2012 INFR Steer Wrestling Tour Champion, making him the best in North America on the INFR circuit. Creighton says Wells needs to commit significant time to his practice while balancing his job and family life in order to achieve that level of success.
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“In rodeo it was very competitive,” Creighton said.
“He wasn’t there just for the sake of it, he was in it to win.”
Wells died on September 17 when members of the Calgary police were called to the Carriage House Pub.
In a statement, the CPS says that officers responded to reports that a man had caused a disturbance and was refusing to leave. The CPS says Wells was behaving erratically, adding that officers tried to de-escalate the situation but he was uncooperative. As a result, officers deployed a taser and OC (pepper spray).
According to police, shortly after being taken into custody, Wells went into medical distress and despite efforts by EMS, died at the scene.
The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) is investigating.
“When you see (that happening) in your territory, it’s just a traumatization of many other deaths that have happened in exactly the same way,” said Michelle Robinson, a local Indigenous advocate and community member.
Wells is the eighth indigenous person across Canada to die in a police shootout since Aug. 29, prompting an urgent parliamentary debate last week, with advocates calling for accountability and the implementation of the calls to action from Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
“Until we see the 94 calls to action and the 231 calls to justice acted upon, we know it’s just another report and we need to see action,” Robinson said.
“That means change so that’s what we’re always looking for.”
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(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
source link https://globalnews.ca/news/10770746/blood-tribe-cowboy-police-death/
