Probation for Mountie Who Ordered Witnesses to Destroy Evidence

A former Prince George Mountie will avoid jail after being found to have obstructed justice by asking bystanders to delete cellphone footage of the arrest of Dale Culver, a First Nations man who later died in police custody.

Arthur Dalman was sentenced to 18 months’ probation on Monday, meaning he will avoid prison but not a criminal record. A B.C. provincial court judge rejected a request for a conditional discharge, saying Dalman’s actions deserved consequences, citing their impact on the public trust of police officers — especially in cases involving Indigenous people.

“His behaviour not only eroded confidence in the justice system but also contributed to deepened mistrust between Indigenous people and the RCMP at a time when efforts towards reconciliation must be an essential priority,” Judge Michael Fortino said.

Dalman was a junior RCMP officer with less than six months’ experience when he responded to another officer’s call for emergency support in downtown Prince George on the evening of July 18, 2017.

Culver, a Wet’suwet’en and Gitxsan man, had been riding a bicycle through the city centre and “matched the description” of someone reported to have been casing vehicles in the neighbourhood, Fortino said. But when an RCMP officer tried to arrest him, he cycled away.

The officer pursued and pulled Culver from his bike. During an ensuing struggle, the officer pressed a panic button to alert other police in the area. Several RCMP vehicles arrived at the scene and about seven officers surrounded Culver, according to a statement by the BC Prosecution Service.

During the three-minute altercation that followed, Culver was pepper-sprayed in the face and punched in the head. He also sustained blows to other parts of his body.

“I can’t breathe,” he said at one point during his arrest.

Culver was placed in a police vehicle. About a half-hour after his arrest, he went into medical distress and died at the scene.

Dalman, who arrived after Culver was placed in the vehicle and never interacted with him, was tasked with identifying and preserving evidence from witnesses at the scene, Fortino said.

“He failed to do so,” Fortino said. “Instead, Mr. Dalman attempted to obstruct justice by directing a civilian witness to delete video footage from the witness’s cellphone.”

The court heard from several witnesses who testified that RCMP officers approached bystanders and told them to stop recording and delete their videos. They were threatened with arrest, imprisonment and having their phones confiscated if they refused, the witnesses said.

But the officers, Dalman and Sgt. Bayani Eusebio Cruz, testified that they never used the word “delete” when speaking with bystanders. The defence lawyers argued that witnesses were asked for statements and any video evidence.

Provincial court Judge Adrian Brooks, who presided over part of the trial prior to his retirement, rejected the testimony that suggested there was no direction by police to delete video of the altercation.

Although Culver was initially under investigation for assaulting a police officer, after his death, the Independent Investigations Office of BC began a probe into the actions of the responding officers.

In February 2023, two officers were charged with manslaughter and another three, including Dalman, were charged with attempting to obstruct justice. Three of those charges were later stayed by Crown prosecutors.

Dalman and Cruz stood trial on obstruction of justice charges in June 2024. Although Judge Brooks said he had “serious concerns” with Cruz’s testimony, he said that a reasonable doubt remained and acquitted the senior officer.

But Brooks found Dalman guilty of obstruction — and declared that he had lied on the stand. Dalman’s conviction marked the first time a guilty verdict had resulted from a charge recommendation by the Independent Investigations Office, which was established in 2012 to investigate police incidents involving death or serious harm.

As he delivered Dalman’s sentence, Fortino called the charge of attempting to obstruct justice a “serious offence” because of the potential impacts on the integrity of the justice system. He said Dalman’s actions were magnified by the fact they “exist within a broader and well-documented history of discrimination and state wrongdoing against Indigenous people.”

The offence carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence.

“Police investigations are an essential first step in the administration of criminal justice,” he said. “Interference with a police investigation undermines accountability and erodes public trust and confidence in the justice system and the rule of law.”

Although the allegations against Dalman were brought to his superiors shortly after the offence, “his professional trajectory within the RCMP continued upward,” Fortino said. Dalman was later promoted to North District’s specialized Emergency Response Team.

“He became a valued member of the force,” Fortino said. “He was held in high regard by both his peers and his superiors.”

In 2023, after charges were laid against Dalman and four other officers, Dalman left Prince George, citing threats against him and his family. The move required leaving his position with the Emergency Response Team and returning to frontline policing. He suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression, a result of “high-risk calls involving serious incidents” during his time with the RCMP, Fortino said.

But Fortino found that “the only substantial career impact” arose from Dalman lying during his trial, which he said prompted the RCMP to pursue his dismissal. The action did not stem from his attempting to obstruct justice, he said.

“It was initiated because he lied under oath.”

Dalman left the RCMP following his conviction in July 2024. An RCMP spokesperson characterized his departure as a resignation in an email to The Tyee.

Fortino said he “listened carefully” to several victim impact statements presented to the court, including one from Culver’s daughter, Lily Speed-Namox.

“Mr. Culver’s family and the community were left without closure, without a clear understanding of what happened and without answers as to how it was possible that he died. I have great sympathy for them,” he said.

Fortino emphasized that he was not sentencing Dalman for Culver’s death but added that “it cannot be entirely divorced from the circumstances” that led to his conviction and the resulting impact on the public’s trust in policing.

“The court must consider the context of the entire evening,” he said. “Mr. Dalman’s actions did not simply break the law. They broke trust in a system that is supposed to protect everyone equally.”

While Crown prosecutors had sought a six-month prison sentence, the defence had asked for a 12-month conditional discharge — which would have prevented Dalman from having a criminal record and avoided related impacts to his future employment.

Fortino said that, as a police officer, Dalman’s failure to uphold the law was an aggravating factor. He added that evidence indicating other officers had directed witnesses to destroy cellphone footage “suggests a broader systemic concern within the RCMP, at least at that time.”

Fortino balanced those factors against what he described as Dalman’s good character, community service and lack of a previous criminal record. He said he could not factor in Dalman’s lying under oath at his trial because that would mean punishing him for “an offence for which he has not been convicted.”

“I am certain that you regret your actions and the consequences that they have brought to your reputation, your family and the community,” Fortino said, addressing Dalman as the sentencing concluded Monday morning.

“I also listened closely to the community members who spoke about how your behaviour impacted their trust in the justice system,” he said. “I am satisfied that the sentence does not exceed your moral culpability, particularly given your relatively junior status at the time.”

The Tyee asked the BC Coroners Service whether it expected to hold an inquest into Culver’s death. According to the Coroners Act, an inquest must be held for deaths that occur in police custody, although some exceptions exist.

The service said its investigation into Culver’s death “remains in progress” and the chief coroner has not determined whether an inquest must be held. The service did acknowledge that police-involved deaths usually trigger an inquest.