Police officer who shot Newfoundland man in his home begins testimony at inquiry
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — The Newfoundland police officer who killed Don Dunphy in 2015 says the day before he went to Dunphy’s home alone he spent an hour going through a year of his frequent Twitter commentary.
Const. Joe Smyth visited Dunphy’s house in Mitchell’s Brook on St. Mary’s Bay after staff in then-premier Paul Davis’s office flagged, out of context, a single Twitter post he’d made.
The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary officer on Monday told the public inquiry into the killing that he did a “cursory background check” to assess any risk before heading to the address in RCMP jurisdiction.
The decision to go alone wasn’t unusual, said Smyth, who was then a member of the premier’s security detail. He’d made similar calls alone before, basing the decision on staff resources, risk, “and the impact of a multiple-officer interview on that particular person.”