Woman wouldn't drop knife, inquest told

Police officers involved in the fatal shooting of a woman in Prince Albert, Sask., in 2008 say they had no choice taking action to stop her.

A coroner's inquest into the death of Jacqueline Montgrand heard Monday from Prince Albert police officers who said it all started as a routine eviction call.

Officers were brought in to evict Montgrand from a house in the city's West Flat neighbourhood.

In the beginning, police said, Montgrand seemed drunk, but friendly.

However, when she put her shoes on, everything changed and she suddenly became angry, Const. Kevin Keith testified.

She went to the kitchen sink, pulled out a steak knife and started quickly marching towards him, holding the knife in front of her, Keith said.

The constable says he warned his fellow officers and started backing away, pulling out his gun. Officers shouted at her to drop the knife, but she wouldn't.

"I'm thinking this lady wants to stab me," Keith told the inquest. "She's going to kill me with this knife. If she takes one more step, I'm going to have to fire."

Peterson said he was hoping that she would drop the weapon, and that he didn't want to shoot her. The officers continued to back up but when they hit the back wall, he fired four shots, he said.

The shots killed Montgrand.

"Basically, there was a line in the sand that I drew, and she crossed it," Peterson said.

The officers were asked whether they could have used pepper spray or their batons on Montgrand.

They said no, that their training told them the only safe option was to use their firearms.

Outside the courthouse, members of Montgrand's family spoke about their grief and their desire to spare other families the same kind of trauma.

"Like, I still haven't gotten over it yet," Montgrand's sister Lucy Guetre said. "I still go through pain, and when I talk about it, sure it hurts, but I'd really like to see something done about it."

The inquest runs until Friday.