Police officers involved in last week’s shootout outside a Saanich bank will be using the Victoria Fish and Game Protective Association’s shooting range as part of an effort to reduce psychological trauma from the incident.
Victoria and Saanich police officers will work with a psychologist at the range on the Malahat in a program aimed at easing the process of returning to work, Victoria police spokesman Cam MacIntyre said Friday.
The participant-led process could include exploring what it feels like to hold a firearm, what it sounds like and the smell after it is fired, he said. An officer may feel comfortable using the equipment, for example, but be bothered by sounds or certain potential scenarios and want to work on that, he said.
Victoria and Saanich officers responded to a report of a robbery at 11 a.m. on June 28 at a Bank of Montreal branch on Shelbourne Street. Videos of the scene showed officers running toward the bank as multiple gunshots sounded.
Police officers ended up in a shootout with the two suspects — 22-year-old brothers Mathew and Isaac Auchterlonie of Shawnigan Lake, who both died at the scene. Six Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team officers were injured in the gunfire and three remain in hospital, with one in the intensive-care unit. About 20 people inside the bank were not physically harmed.
Based on a well-regarded Edmonton police program, the one at the Malahat gun range is designed to diminish the potential for long-term psychological injury from “unique stressors” officers may experience following a critical incident, MacIntyre said. It provides the “opportunity to work through any triggers the event has created, while ensuring the officer is in the safety of a controlled environment.”
Individual officers set the pace and scope of their own process and are supported by peers throughout the training. It is expected to run for several weeks.
The program is for any officer affected by the incident, MacIntyre said, whether they were dealing with the crime scene or providing first aid to the injured, for example.
Vancouver Island’s Integrated Major Crime Unit is leading the investigation into what police are classifying as attempted murder. The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. is also examining what happened.
An online fundraiser to provide assistance to injured officers had surpassed $244,000 by Friday evening, with 1,300 donations. Top donors, at $10,000 each, are the Bank of Montreal and two individuals.
cjwilson@ timescolonist.com
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