OTTAWA — The family of an Ottawa man who died after a violent arrest by police eight years ago is hoping the coroner's inquest into his death will lead to improvements in the way police respond to calls involving a mental health crisis. The inquest into the July 2016 death of 38-year-old Abdirahman Abdi began Monday morning in Ottawa. His family issued a statement that was read by their lawyer, Lawrence Greenspon.
"What happened to our beloved brother could have been prevented, and we have been disappointed in the lack of progress made with respect to the implementation of the mental health response by Ottawa police," they wrote. "We sincerely hope that no other family has to go through this in the future." The inquest is mandated by law because Abdi was injured while in policy custody.
It is set to last four weeks. The jury is not tasked with determining legal responsibility but it can make recommendations to avoid similar deaths in the future. Abdi died after police officers responded to a 911 call reporting that a man was groping women outside a coffee shop in Ottawa's Hintonburg neighbourhood.
Those women, who were only referred to by their initials, will not be testifying in the inquest. Their experiences will instead be included through their previous statements to police and investigators. Inquest lawyer Alessandra Hollands told the jury Monday that Abdi ran from the scene, and officers took him to the ground and hit him when they caught up with him outside his apart.