VICTORIA — A Victoria police officer who was found to have made a serious error in judgment when he fired an anti-riot weapon into a smoke-filled room in 2019, hitting a woman in the head and killing her, has been handed a seven-day suspension without pay.
But the mother of Lisa Rauch, the woman who died, said the years spent waiting to find out how Sgt. Ron Kirkwood would be disciplined have been a form of punishment too.
"The fact that we have waited 5 1/2 years to get here has been a punishment for us, as well for (Kirkwood) and his family," said Audrey Rauch outside a hearing in Victoria on Thursday.
She said she was satisfied that Kirkwood felt remorse.
Adjudicator Wally Oppal, who was appointed by B.C.'s police watchdog, announced the punishment at the hearing, calling Kirkwood a good police officer who had a bad moment during a challenging call, which led to "catastrophic circumstances."
Oppal ruled last month that the officer's use of the anti-riot weapon that killed 43-year-old Lisa Rauch was "reckless and unnecessary."
He said the officer had an exemplary record, and had made a serious but not malicious error in judgment.
He said he was satisfied that the misconduct "in the context of other relevant factors does not justify dismissal, demotion or a lengthy suspension."
Lisa's mother and father Ron Rauch were among some 20 people in the audience when Oppal handed down his ruling.
"I have no experience with any kind of similar things happening, so I'm just trusting that Wally Oppal would know, what would be appropriate in this case, because he does this kind of work," Audrey Rauch said.
She called on Victoria Police Department to improve training and forgo the use of the anti-riot weapon known as an ARWEN gun, which fires plastic bullets.
"It was made for riot control, and not shoot somebody from 15 feet, even if it was 15 feet," she said.
She held back tears as she described her daughter as a person with a great sense of humour. "She was funny," she said. "She loved to play the piano."
Oppal, who is a former B.C. Supreme Court judge, was appointed by the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner to review the evidence against the officer and determined earlier that Kirkwood committed misconduct when he used the weapon on Rauch, who was in a drug-induced psychosis.
Oppal's ruling last month said police were called on Christmas Day 2019 to a Victoria apartment where Rauch had been using drugs and alcohol.
It said when police entered the apartment, their view was obscured by smoke from a fire and they believed Rauch was standing, but she was sitting and was hit in the head by two plastic projectiles.
Oppal said Thursday that Kirkwood's remorse was genuine and he was very unlikely to repeat his misconduct.
“However, I have to consider the whole of the circumstances, and here the incident was serious. It was a momentary one, and it was an error made in judgment. I have to consider that.”
Oppal said the officer is on medical leave and has missed “significant time” from work to address his post-traumatic stress stemming from the death.
Among Oppal's recommendations are that the Victoria Police Department take steps to ensure front-line officers wear body cameras.
Oppal acknowledged that the department expects the equipment in the coming years.
“I urge them to attach priority to the acquisition.”
He said communication between the department and the victim's family lacked "sensitivity," included delays in providing information, along with "multiple instances of misinformation."
Audrey Rauch agreed with the need for more accurate communication. "We waited for 10 months to find out that they shot her in the back of the head, while she was sitting on a couch, with her back to them," she said. "That's wrong."
Oppal also criticized the communication between the department and Kirkwood, noting the officer was told of the woman's death by text.
"I accept fully the trauma that he experienced and I recognize what he had gone through. In my view, he could have been treated with much more sensitivity," Oppal said.
Victoria Police Chief Del Manak said he accepted the suspension of Kirkwood as well as Oppal's recommendations.
Manak said he was glad Oppal recognized the circumstances of the incident. "The adjudicator recognized that, when talking about the penalty, that a seven-day-penalty took into account the challenging and dynamic nature of this call and what the officer did not intend to happen," Manak said. "Of course, we all recognize that there are no winners in this."
He added that it is important to continue to recognize the family's stress and pain.
"The family have been here throughout, and I think it's important to recognize and make sure that our heartfelt condolences continue to go out to the family," he said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 12, 2025.
Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press
