Cardston RCMP release photos from arrest

Last week’s arrest of Dylan Bird by a Cardston RCMP officer has become the subject of public commentary and criticism on social media.

Photos obtained from the officer’s vehicle Watchguard video have been released to the public in “an effort to provide additional information and context surrounding this incident.”

According to RCMP, the Director of Law Enforcement was notified, but the matter was deemed out of scope and the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team will not investigate.

“The use of a conducted energy weapon in the interest of public safety is always a difficult decision that is not taken lightly and includes internal reporting requirements,” stated RCMP in an update to the incident on Monday. “We are conducting an internal review process to gather a full account of what took place during this incident.”

On Nov. 23 shortly before 9:30 a.m., a Cardston RCMP officer was on Kainai Nation in cooperation with Blood Tribe Police Service as the officer was seeking to locate individuals on outstanding warrants in the community. The officer observed a male walking on the road who was known to have outstanding warrants related to various offences.

The Cardston RCMP officer exited their police vehicle and advised the male he was under arrest. The officer observed the male holding a long metal pipe and directed him to drop it. The male failed to comply, and an interaction occurred where the male struck the officer with the pipe. The officer then attempted to get the male under control which included two deployments of a conducted energy weapon, but this was unsuccessful. The RCMP officer called for assistance.

The male was secured in custody after a second RCMP officer came on scene and assisted in the arrest.

In addition to charges for outstanding warrants of uttering threats, criminal harassment and mischief, Dylan Riley Bird, 27, of Kainai Nation has been charged with two counts of assaulting a peace officer causing bodily harm, assaulting a peace officer, obstruction and failure to comply with a release order.

Following a judicial hearing, Bird was released from custody on cash bail with conditions and is next scheduled to appear in Cardston provincial court on Dec.13.

The RCMP officer attended the hospital and received treatment for the injuries he received during the interaction and was released.