RCMP 'sloppy' and 'negligent' in investigating Colten Boushie's death, say independent experts

Colten Boushie's family wasn't entirely surprised last month when a Saskatchewan jury acquitted Gerald Stanley of the murder of the young Cree man.

They had sensed holes in the RCMP investigation from the beginning.

"The RCMP did a botched-up job," said Debbie Baptiste, Boushie's mom. "They looked, and then they looked away."

Independent investigators agree with those concerns.

"It's sloppy work," said Michael Davis, a Toronto-based veteran of homicide investigations. "Obviously, the RCMP needs a lot more training."

The 56-year-old Stanley was charged with second-degree murder in Boushie's death, but a jury found him not guilty.

Davis is among several experts CBC asked to review the evidence and testimony presented at the trial in order to provide their own assessment of the investigation.

They are critical of the police's failure to protect the crime scene, as well as the decision to not send a key analyst to the scene in the aftermath of the shooting.

The federal police watchdog, the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP, announced Tuesday that it has initiated an investigation of the RCMP's original investigation to determine if it was conducted reasonably and whether race played a role.

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