The mother of Robert Dziekanski has filed a lawsuit against the four officers involved in her son's death, the governments of B.C. and Canada, and Vancouver International Airport.
Lawyer Walter Kosteckyj, representing Zofia Cisowski, told media at the Braidwood inquiry - a public hearing into Dziekaski's death at Vancouver International Airport Oct. 14, 2007 - that the deadline for filing a lawsuit (two years from the incident) was fast approaching.
"I was put in a position where I had to file," he said. "I didn't want it to be a distraction to the inquiry, but we unfortunately ran out of time."
No dollar figures were given, but Kosteckyj believes the damages could be in the millions.
The lawsuit says “the Defendants each caused or contributed to a chain of events that resulted in the death of Mr. Dziekanski and caused Ms. Cisowski to suffer psychiatric injury or psychological harm.”
It also alleges negligence by all parties and claims that the officers involved in the incident “acted in bad faith, and with malice towards Mr. Dziekanski.”
Ravi Hira, the lawyer for Const. Kwesi Millington - who used a Taser on Dziekanski five times - said he has not read the statement of claim but said it’s common for lawyers to "allege every possible claim" in a civil suit.
"It's easy to write it down," he said. "It has to be proved in a courtroom. Let's wait for the evidence."
Vancouver International Airport lawyer Dwight Stewart also said he didn’t have time to read the statement of claim – since he was giving closing submissions at the Braidwood inquiry Thursday – but stated the airport will defend against the allegations.
