In February 2018, Pivot Legal Society and lawyer Frances Mahon stood alongside and supported the family of Tony Du, a man living with mental illness shot and killed by Vancouver Police officer Andrew Peters, during a coroner’s inquest into his death. Mahon represented the family of Du and urged the jury to make a number of recommendations that would improve police response to mental health crises, protect public safety, and ensure independent, civilian-led investigation of police-related injuries or deaths.

After a week of painful testimony, a five-person jury adopted many of our key policy objectives and recommendations, including a containment strategy, that, were it in place back in 2014, may have prevented the fatal shooting. This was an important step forward in making the Vancouver Police Department more accountable and protecting public safety.