‘No knife in Jeffrey slay’

‘No knife in Jeffrey slay’

Eyewitnesses in independent probe tell consistent story.

By Mari-Len De Guzman

TORONTO – The undercover police officers involved in the fatal shooting and death of 17-year-old Jeffrey Reodica last May 21 failed to identify themselves. Jeffrey did not have a knife with him when he was gunned down by police officer Dan Belanger. He was trying to get up when he was shot three times in the back.

These are according to the accounts of at least ten eyewitnesses interviewed by a private investigation team headed by lawyer Bayani Abesamis, commissioned by the Reodica family in their own search for truth and justice for Jeffrey.

The results of the investigation were revealed in a press conference held at Filipino Centre-Toronto last Friday, August 27, by the lawyers of the Reodica family, Barry Swadron, Abesamis and Antonio Villarin where the Reodicas were also in attendance.

The Special Investigations Unit is reportedly releasing by the end of August the results of its own investigation on the incident.

Jeffrey was shot by an undercover police officer three months ago during a squabble between a group of Filipino youngsters and some white teenagers in Scarborough.

Abesamis said his team interviewed at least ten eyewitnesses who were within a perimeter of between four and twenty feet from Jeffrey the day he was shot, which happened in a residential area near Lawrence Ave. East and Brimley.

These are the witnesses’ accounts pieced together by the family-initiated investigation:

On May 21st, Jeffrey was on his way to a birthday party with some friends. They came across another group of Filipino teens having hostile “interaction” with some white kids. There was no actual engagement between the two groups but there was “posturing.”

Suddenly, two men emerged from the direction of the white kids and approached Jeffrey and his friends. The men did not identify themselves to Jeffrey’s group. Not knowing that they were actually undercover police officers, the teens thought the men were some Witnesses say they heard one of the officers tell Jeffrey to “drop the rock.” As he complied, the two officers approached and tried to restrain him. Unaware that they were police officers, Jeffrey continually asked them why they were doing this to him. Still no form of identification was given, Jeffrey tried to get up. Belanger shot him in the back three times, in rapid succession.

It was earlier reported that Jeffrey was holding a knife when he was shot. (Globe and Mail columnist Christie Blatchford wrote in great detail how the young Reodica attacked a police officer with a knife before he was shot.) None of the eyewitnesses, however, saw a knife and to date, no actual knife has surfaced to support the claim that the officer shot him because he had a knife.

Minutes after the shooting, Jeffrey’s friends, who saw the incident, were herded into a TTC bus and taken to headquarters for questioning.

Jeffrey was pronounced dead at Sunnybrook Hospital on May 24th.

The day before

According to the investigation, the altercation between the two groups of teens actually began the day before at a basketball court in St. Rose of Lima Church on Lawrence Avenue.

A group of Filipino teens was playing ball when some white kids approached them. One of the white kids asked to take a shot. When the ball was passed to him he started to walk away. When one of the Filipino youth tried to take back the ball he was punched in the face. The white teens shouted, “F- you Filipinos! Go back to wherever you came from and eat your rice!” Jeffrey was not part of this quarrel.

There was a challenge for a fight the next day. These were the same group of youngsters involved in the incident when Jeffrey was killed.

Lawyer Barry Swadron, who heads The Justice for Jeffrey legal team, traces back the root of Jeffrey’s death to “bullying and racism.” He refers to the incident at the basketball court where white kids took the basketball and uttered racist remarks against the Filipino youth.

However, Swadron pointed out there is no evidence racism was a factor when the police officer shot Jeffrey.

Search for truth

As the independent investigation comes to a conclusion and as the SIU prepares to release its own findings, the Reodica family is determined to exhaust all possible avenues to get to the truth.

Depending on the result of the SIU investigation, the Reodicas and The Justice for Jeffrey legal team are considering other options such as a coroner’s inquest where the circumstances under Jeffrey’s death will be analyzed.

“The subject matter here cries out for a coroner’s inquest on a number of issues, as for example, when police officers should be required to identify themselves and under what circumstances are they permitted to draw their firearms and to use deadly force,” Swadron stated.

Should the SIU find that no criminal charges will be laid against the police officers and the request to hold a coroner’s inquest is refused, the Reodicas will push for a public inquiry or possibly launch a civil lawsuit, according to Swadron.

No chance to grieve

As the youngest among three siblings, Jeffrey was always treated with extra care by his mother Flora, and eldest sister Robyn. They would drive him to wherever he needed to go as their way of protecting their youngest boy.

“We always told him to keep away from trouble. We always figured that dropping him off and picking him up wherever he is, whatever time of the night, kept him from trouble,” Flora tearfully recalls, saying it is still hard for the family to accept that the young man whom they have always protected was instantly taken away from them.

Since the death of Jeffrey three months ago, his family has struggled to live normally despite the situation. His father, Willie, says it has been difficult.

“Since Jeffrey’s death we did not even have time to grieve for his passing. We have to install cameras and leave the lights on around the house,” he said.

The family has every reason to be cautious. Flora disclosed they have received at least two hate mails from anonymous sources. The white youngsters involved in the squabble still live in the neighborhood where the Reodicas reside. To date, they have never seen the faces of the police officers involved in the death of their son.