Officers recount Quinn MacDougall’s last moments before he was shot dead

Seconds before Quinn MacDougall was shot dead outside a Mountain townhouse complex in April 2018, he lunged toward a Hamilton police officer, grabbed their right arm and wielded a buck knife over their head.

Const. Ognjen Laka says he feared for his life during the close-quarters, 11-seconds-long interaction that ultimately ended when another officer shot and killed MacDougall.

I was scared," Laka testified Wednesday at an inquest into MacDougall's death. A person armed with a knife, running at you ... I don't know one person who wouldn't be scared."

Laka said he tried several times to calm down a distraught MacDougall - including deploying his Taser twice - before the 19-year-old was fatally shot near his Caledon Avenue home on April 3, 2018.

Court heard on the third day of the inquest that MacDougall was fairly quiet and unassuming when police first arrived to the townhouse complex shortly after 3:30 p.m.

MacDougall - wearing glasses, grey track pants and a hoodie - had twice called police that rainy spring day, first saying he received threatening messages over social media and later alleging there was a man in his neighbourhood with a gun out to get him.

Laka, one of two people to testify Wednesday, was the first patrol officer to attend the call near Mountain Secondary School.

Court heard Laka approached two young men in his cruiser, asking whether one of them was Quinn through his passenger window.

I got out and asked him about the call, because I had information there was a person in the area with a gun," Laka said. Quinn looked around and pointed at the vehicle that just got there, parked behind me. He said that's the guy with the gun."

That car, a grey Chevrolet Equinox, was an unmarked police vehicle driven by Det. Const. Marcello Felice who, at the time, was working as a plain-clothed officer on a multi-jurisdictional stolen auto project.

Felice testified Wednesday he responded to Caledon Avenue on his own accord after hearing on his radio there was a weapons call just a half-kilometre away from him. He said he didn't tell the dispatcher he was going.

There was a lot of radio chatter going on," Felice said. I didn't want to interfere. I thought I'd go to the area and if I saw something, I'd relay that."

Laka didn't recognize Felice. He testified he approached the Chevy, saw Felice using a radio and returned to MacDougall to reassure him the man in the car was an officer.

I advised him he was a police officer," Laka said. I didn't get any response so I repeated myself. He was now alone."

Then things began to unravel.

MacDougall, still quiet, began to pace and mutter under his breath that the Bloods - a well-known street gang - were after him," Laka testified.

When he started saying the Bloods were after him, I tried to reassure him the police were here and that we were going to deal with it," he added.

Within seconds, court heard, MacDougall reached into his back pocket, pulled out a silver buck knife and walked about Caledon, holding both of his hands in the air and saying shoot me" repeatedly.

It was this point Laka testified he believed MacDougall was having a mental-health episode.

After he said the Bloods were after him, I thought he had some mental-health issue and was having an episode that day. I tried to engage him and just try to talk to him. The behaviour he displayed, I was concerned for the public safety."

MacDougall then ran toward the Chevy waiving his knife, Felice testified, while Laka yelled at him to drop the weapon.

(MacDougall) was making eye contact with me, running in my direction," Felice said. He looked like he was desperate to stab me. He looked like he was in desperation."

Felice said he too feared for his life when MacDougall approached his two-thirds-closed window with a knife, despite his car being locked.

Had I not rolled up that window, I would've been stabbed," Felice testified.

Felice remained in his car as three to four more officers arrived on scene. MacDougall, pacing around the back of the Chevy and saying shoot me," ignored orders to drop the knife, court heard.

Laka said he twice tried to deploy his Taser to calm MacDougall, but was unsuccessful. The second time, he testified, was while he ran backwards and MacDougall ran toward him.

He had his hand raised above his head and he had the knife," Laka said. I remember he touched my right arm. He was so close I saw the knife above my head."

Then the constable heard the gunshots, three or four of them in succession, fired by the police officers surrounding the entangled pair. MacDougall paused, took a step back and fell on the concrete near the sidewalk. An ambulance was called. The young man later died in hospital.

Asked whether there was something he could have done better that day, Laka said he couldn't think of anything - but he wished he had.

I tried to reassure him he was safe and tried to use non-lethal weapons," he said. I ask myself many times, what if ... because the result of it is unfortunate. A young life was lost. And just myself, being a human and feeling sorry for everyone, I questioned myself many times what I could have done better."

Sebastian Bron is a reporter at The Spectator. sbron@thespec.com