Animator/Producor Paul Boyd shot and killed by police

[Raph's Girl]

http://news.toonzone.net/article.php?ID=18523
http://www.canada.com/theprovince/ne...f25855&k=67013

Friends of talented Vancouver cartoonist Paul Boyd say he was the man shot and killed by Vancouver police last week on Granville Street.

"[His death] was horrible -- it was a terrible misfortune," Boyd's animation colleague Bruce Alcock said yesterday.
Memorial marks the place on Granville Street where 39-year-old Paul Boyd was shot by Vancouver police.

"He was not a violent person."

Vancouver police say they shot in self-defence after two officers were injured by Boyd swinging a padlock on a chain at them.

Alcock said that although Boyd suffered from bipolar disorder, he "was not a person who would carry weapons or get into fights."

"He had his bicycle chain with him in his bag," Alcock said. "That was normal because he had a bicycle.

"It's very depressing to think what state of mind he must have been in to have gotten that angry [to swing the chain at police]."

Boyd, 39, was killed last Monday night after police responded to a 911 call concerning a man carrying a potentially dangerous weapon near Granville and 15th Avenue.

After Boyd's chain injured two officers, police say additional officers retreated for half a block before shooting him in self-defence.

The incident is being investigated by the Vancouver police. The RCMP's Integrated Homicide Investigations Team will review the VPD's probe.

Alcock said Vancouver's tightly-knit animation community is in "shellshock" over Boyd's death.

"It's very depressing facing the reality of it. He was a sweet-natured guy and an amazingly talented animator, super-smart and very thoughtful. We were very close, both personally and professionally."

Alcock's partner in animations, Tina Ouellette, called Boyd a "great guy."

"We are having a hard time dealing with his loss. He was a good friend," she said.

Alcock, who directed commercials and TV shows with Boyd for seven years, said Boyd had been "struggling with a bipolar disorder" for some time.

Boyd attended Lord Byng High School on Vancouver's west side, where his talent for drawing was noticed by fellow students.

After learning animation mostly through on-the-job training, he moved to an apartment in the 1100-block West 12th Avenue, just seven blocks from the site of the tragedy.

On the day of the shooting, Boyd was experiencing anxiety in the hours that led up to his death, Alcock said, and he and Ouellette spent most of the day trying to calm him.

"He was not doing that well. He was in a real downturn-part of the cycle. It happens from time to time when bipolar people get pretty mixed up," said Alcock.

"He was worried about his job. We assured him he would have employment. He was really flourishing in our work environment."

Alcock said Boyd was not suicidal and had no problems with drugs or alcohol, so far as he knew. He was not in a relationship.

"I know he was on medication, but I don't know how consistently he was taking it," he said.

When Alcock and Ouellette left Boyd at about 4:30 p.m., Boyd seemed "OK" but "incoherent."

"He was going to clean up his room," Alcock said.

The shooting took place five hours later.

Boyd's father, David Boyd, said the family will issue a statement today.

Meanwhile, a makeshift memorial with a dozen floral bouquets has been set up by Boyd's friends at a bus stop on the east side of Granville near 15th Avenue.

"In memorium. Much admired and missed by many," reads an unsigned note.

"I know you loved art," reads another message by Jonathan.

Boyd was a director on Ed, Edd, 'n Eddy and The Mr. Hell Show, and also provided animation on Mucha Lucha! and Gary Larson's Tales from the Far Side special.

[KROW]

So they shot him when they could have just tackled him and restrained him? Pretty harsh treatment. Even if the police thought the best way to end the situation was with guns, then they could have hit his leg. I've never heard of police officers afraid of a friggin bike chain. They didn't have to shoot him.

[Raph's Girl]

Originally Posted by KROW

So they shot him when they could have just tackled him and restrained him? Pretty harsh treatment. Even if the police thought the best way to end the situation was with guns, then they could have hit his leg. I've never heard of police officers afraid of a friggin bike chain. They didn't have to shoot him.

Sad to say but this is how all cops seem to act in the Pacific Northwest. It's shoot first and wonder why later.