By Curtis Galbraith

ASIRT

Two RCMP members charged after 2018 shooting death during an investigation near Whitecourt

Jun 8, 2020 | 2:23 PM

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team says in a news release that two Whitecourt RCMP officers have been charged after a 31-year-old man was shot and killed during a 2018 investigation.

Corporal Randy Stenger and Constable Jessica Brown are each facing one count of criminal negligence causing death after the July 3, 2018 death of Clayton Crawford.

ASIRT says this all started July 2 after unidentified suspects went to a Valhalla Centre home and fired on the people inside. One person was injured while another, a 31-year-old man, fled in what ASIRT describes as “a very distinctive vehicle.”

An off-duty member told on-duty RCMP that he thought he saw the same vehicle parked at the Chickadee Creek rest stop near Whitecourt.

When police arrived just after noon on July 3, 2018, they found a man asleep in the vehicle.

A confrontation that ensued, the vehicle started moving, and shots were fired. The vehicle went across the highway and into a ditch.

ASIRT says it reviewed the evidence and had the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service check it as well.

ASIRT’s investigation concluded last August and got a report from the Crown May 29. Charges were laid on June 5.

Stenger and Brown are due in Whitecourt Provincial Court July 14.