British ColumbiaThe findings are drawing criticism from an advocacy group for domestic violence victims. It faults the police response and says systemic conditions contributed to the fatal shooting.Surrey mom Vanessa Renteria Valencia’s death ‘tragic,’ watchdog says, but police actions ‘reasonable’CBC News · Posted: Sep 27, 2025 12:21 AM EDT | Last Updated: 7 hours agoVanessa Renteria Valencia in an undated photo from Facebook. (Vanessa Valencia/Facebook)Warning: This story contains graphic descriptions and content related to domestic violence. B.C.’s civilian police watchdog will not ask prosecutors to consider charges against a Surrey Mountie who shot a mother reportedly holding scissors to the neck of her baby, drawing the ire of an advocate for survivors of domestic violence.Chief civilian director of the Independent Investigation Office (IIO), Jessica Berglund, wrote in her decision that she did not consider there to be any reasonable grounds that the officer committed an offence during the “tragic” situation on Sept 19. 2024 that saw police fatally shoot Vanessa Renteria Valencia.”This child will now grow up without a mother. It has impacted the lives of many people,” Berglund’s decision reads.”However, on a review of all the evidence, it was reasonable for the [officer] to believe there was a threat of grievous bodily harm or death to the baby when he shot [Renteria Valencia] and that the force used was necessary to protect the baby.”Jessica Berglund, chief civilian director of the Independent Investigation Office (IIO), spoke to reporters on Friday about her decision on the shooting death. (CBC)The advocate against domestic violence, however, faults the police response and argues there were systemic conditions that contributed to the fatal shooting.Early morning 911 callBerglund’s narrative of the fatal night begins with an early morning 911 call from an unnamed person inside the home where the tragedy unfolded.That person reported Renteria Valencia was breaking things and had locked herself in the bathroom with their baby.The watchdog’s report notes Renteria Valencia had spent several months in a shelter for women who experience domestic violence. It says she had recently returned to the home shared with her spouse and another family member before the shooting, and she may have been in an abusive relationship.Angela Marie MacDougall, executive director of Battered Women’s Support Services in Vancouver, was highly critical of the conclusions of the investigation. (Ben Nelms/CBC)Police tried to speak to her in English. They asked for a Spanish-speaking officer but were told none was available.Using Google Translate, one officer on scene asked the caller, “Has she said anything that she is going to hurt the baby?” The caller, through the app, responded, “Yes, he [sic] said he was going to hurt the baby.”Police kicked in the bathroom door, Berglund’s decision continued. They saw Renteria Valencia with a closed pair of scissors to the baby’s neck.Video from the scene, Berglund wrote, captured Renteria Valencia screaming in Spanish and officers commanding her to “drop the knife” and “drop the scissors.”More officers arrived, including the one who shot Renteria Valencia.They assembled in two lines facing the bathroom. Two of them, including the shooter, had guns drawn. Two others brandished a Taser and a “less lethal” weapon.Renteria Valencia eventually took the scissors away from the baby’s neck and put them on the edge of the tub. But when police stepped forward, she brought one end back to the baby’s neck.The officer in question fired twice, hitting Renteria Valencia twice. Efforts to save her life were unsuccessful.Advocate blasts reportBerglund’s analysis found the officers attempted to de-escalate, before kicking in the door. She called the officer’s decision to shoot “reasonable.”Eleven police officers were interviewed for her decision, along with 17 civilian witnesses and three first responders. The officer who shot Renteria Valencia did not speak to Berglund or submit their notes. Berglund noted her office cannot compel such an officer under investigation to do so.Berglund’s report did note that language barriers prevented effective communication.”It is very unfortunate that there was no Spanish-speaking officer available in the critical moments, although it is not certain that this would have effectively de-escalated the situation,” she wrote.The decision found officers believed she was going to harm the baby. They had prepared a less lethal option to use, but the plan called for the use of lethal force “if she starts stabbing the baby.”But, Angela Marie MacDougall, executive director of Battered Women’s Support Services (BWSS), accuses police of escalating the situation by barking commands and taking up a tactical stance.She called the fact they used Google Translate to speak to Renteria Valencia “appalling.””There is absolutely no way that an app can be sufficient to describe to her what the issues were and what was going on,” MacDougall said in an interview.She argues police should have taken a trauma-informed approach to de-escalation. And added Renteria Valencia being back in the home of her spouse shows the lack of housing options for women fleeing domestic violence.With files from The Canadian Press and Michelle Ghoussoub
IIO clears police of wrongdoing in fatal shooting of B.C. mom with infant
