Standing hearing scheduled for inquest into police shooting death

A judge will determine who will be allowed to participate in the upcoming inquest into the death of a man shot by Winnipeg police two years ago.

A standing hearing for the inquest into the death of William Weiss is scheduled for Oct. 9 at the Manitoba Law Courts. People who want to participate are asked to call 204-953-3693 before Oct. 7.

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Weiss, 33, was shot by a Winnipeg police officer on June 17, 2022, while an officer was conducting an unrelated traffic stop at Salter Street and Mountain Avenue. According to a report from the Independent Investigation Unit, Weiss came up to the police cruiser’s driver's side door while carrying a knife.

The report said Weiss yelled at the officer, saying 'you are going to die' and 'this is the day you are going to die,' and tried to attack the officer.

Weiss later tried chasing pedestrians with the knife, which was when the officer got out of the car and demanded Weiss drop the knife, the report said. When Weiss refused, the officer shot him in the neck, the IIU reported.

Weiss was pronounced dead at the Health Sciences Centre later that day.

The IIU report said there were three calls to police concerning Weiss before he was shot, saying he was experiencing mental health issues and vandalizing vehicles. A toxicology report found ethanol, cocaine, diazepam, nordiazepam, zopiclone, and acetaminophen in his system.

The inquest was called in 2023. It will explore the circumstances and events that led up to Weiss' death and will determine if anything can be done to prevent similar deaths