Death of Koray Kevin Celik, calls for an independent committee to re-examine the case

The family of Montrealer Koray Kevin Celik, their lawyer, and human rights groups are calling on the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Quebec, Simon Jolin-Barrette, to put in place an independent committee to re-examine the case.

Celik was killed during a Montreal police (SPVM) intervention in 2017 in Île-Bizard. Quebec’s director of criminal and penal prosecutions (DPCP) decided not to charge the officers involved in the case.

Celik, 28, was intoxicated and his parents wanted to prevent him from getting behind the wheel when they called 911 seeking help just after 2 a.m. on March 6, 2017, on Montreal’s West Island. The officers responded to the call and attempted to subdue Celik, including with a baton, but his parents said they witnessed police use excessive force, repeatedly beating their son with their feet and knees before he stopped breathing. He was pronounced dead in hospital shortly after.

His parents also alleged that Quebec’s police watchdog (BEI) led a biased investigation presenting only the police officers version of the facts in their press release. The mother said the BEI was hesitant to meet the family, and only did three months after their son’s death.

#WATCH: Grieving parents calling on Quebec's Minister of Justice to create an independent committee and re-open their son’s case after he was killed during a #Montreal police intervention.

READ: https://t.co/SKvloTPLm3 pic.twitter.com/b9wY9ELhH4

— CityNews Montreal (@CityNewsMTL) June 19, 2023

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On May 10, 2019 following the analysis of the BEI’s investigation, the DPCP announced their decision to not charge the officers involved in the death.

“More than six years after the killing our son, we are losing confidence in the authorities of the province. Their lack of neutrality, independence, and impartiality are the reasons for our loss of confidence. Their bias in favour of police officers, their prejudicial representation of our accounts of the killing, and their complete disregard for our rights and emotions deeply scarred us and hurt us. Our son deserves justice. We hereby call upon Minister Jolin-Barrette, once again, to order a review by an independent committee. This will help improve our confidence in the authorities of the province,” said Cesur Celik, Koray Kevin Celik’s father, in a press release Monday.

At the end of April 2023, after a public inquiry, coroner Luc Malouin, published a report which brought up some faults in the Montreal police intervention saying it “was not done in accordance with the basic principles of good police work.” The report presents contradictory information to the BEI investigation. For this reason, the parents say they cannot consider the DPCP’s decision credible and are calling for an independent committee to re-examine the evidence in their son’s case. The request is backed up by the Ligue des droits et libertés (LDL) and the Coalition contre la répression et les abus policiers.

“The DPCP says the force used by police officers was necessary but the coroner says exactly the opposite, while the Comité de déontologie policière speaks of excessive force. The DPCP thinks it is the only one that is right. That’s why other eyes need to asses this sad file,” said Alexandra Popovic, spokesperson for the Coalition contre la répression et les abus policiers, in a statement Monday.

“It is time to intervene, so the system that treats investigations following citizen deaths at the hands of police are impartial, independent, and transparent. We ask the Quebec government to reconsider the DPCP’s decision and to learn lessons for other cases in the future,” added Laurence Guenette, with the LDL, in the same press release.

In an email to CityNews, the office for Quebec’s Justice Minister declined to comment out of respect for the legal process.