Second-degree murder charges have now been laid against a Calgary police officer — Cst. Craig Stothard — in connection with the shooting of two men involved in a slow-speed 2023 chase on Memorial Drive. In the following archived stories, we take a look back at how these men’s families remember their loved ones. Read More
Family and friends of Levon Fox Wildman and Wesley Davidson say they should not have been shot
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Family and friends of Levon Fox Wildman and Wesley Davidson say they should not have been shot
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Second-degree murder charges have now been laid against a Calgary police officer — Cst. Craig Stothard — in connection with the shooting of two men involved in a slow-speed 2023 chase on Memorial Drive. In the following archived stories, we take a look back at how these men’s families remember their loved ones.
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‘He was loved’: Family holds vigil for man killed by police on Memorial Drive
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By Michael Rodriguez / Calgary Herald / published May 29, 2024
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Family of a man shot dead by police during a chase on a busy Calgary roadway last year gathered Wednesday to commemorate the one-year anniversary of his death, remembering him as a loving and kind father, grandfather and son.
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Noon News Roundup
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Levon Fox Wildman was one of two men killed on May 29, 2023, when police opened fire on a stolen cube van that had led officers on a slow-speed chase down Memorial Drive, the other being the driver of the vehicle, Wesley Davidson. Dennis Wildman, Levon’s brother, was also a passenger in the vehicle; he was taken to hospital in police custody after the incident.
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On Wednesday, Levon Fox Wildman’s family held a vigil close to the spot where he died at the intersection of Memorial Drive and Edmonton Trail. Fox was 39 years old when he died, a father of four and a new grandfather.
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Family members and other loved ones, many from Stoney Nakoda First Nation, sang songs, beat drums, prayed and tossed flowers into the Bow River in Fox’s memory.
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“We’re gathered here today in his memory to celebrate his life and also to put some humanity into the whole event,” said Lena Wildman, the mother to the brothers. “People need to take a step back and remember that these are people. He wasn’t an unwanted person; he was loved.”
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Wildman said her son was an incredibly kind and giving person who had a deep love for his family.
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“He was always looking out for others,” she said.
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Both of her sons have struggled with addiction, Wildman said, but in the months leading up to his death, Levon “worked so hard to break away from that life” and support his family. He was waiting to go into treatment at the time of his death.
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Levon was in Calgary to “rescue” his older brother, said Wildman, and the two were looking for a ride home to Morley.
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“They were passengers in that vehicle,” said Wildman. “The driver offered them a ride and they were thinking, ‘That’s my ride home.’ ”
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Levon’s brother has been in addiction treatment and recovery programs in the year since the incident but is still reeling from the trauma it caused, said Wildman.
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Sitting on a bench along the banks of the Bow River, Wildman motioned toward the nearby Calgary Drop-In Centre and said, “I know there’s a lot of our people over there struggling.
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“The message I want to put out there to families is never give up on them,” she said. “I never give up on my kids, knowing they’re battling addiction. I always say prayers. I always ask creator to bring them peace.”
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‘No need for guns’
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Tara McHugh, the mother of one of Levon’s adult daughters, said addiction had stripped her daughter of a close bond with her father for much of her life. She said Levon had started to turn a corner before his death and was becoming more involved in his daughter’s life, making his loss even tougher.
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“It’s been a struggle, but she’s doing the best that she can,” said McHugh. “Today, though, it just brings back a lot of emotions.”
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McHugh said she’s seen videos of the incident shared on social media and maintains that the police response that day was excessive.
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“There was no need for guns,” McHugh said. “There were other methods that could have been used to stop the truck that day.”
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Said Wildman: “The force of police, it’s really too much. Instead of asking them to show their hands, identify yourselves, what do they do? They shoot at them, and unfortunately two people died. That was so unnecessary, and it really bothers me.”
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At the time of the incident, police said a security guard at a private property in Mayland Heights reported three suspicious men who’d fled in a stolen cube van. Police said it was driven erratically as it left the neighbourhood — hitting a barricade and a building — and multiple officers began tailing the vehicle as it travelled down Memorial Drive.
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Officers attempted to pull over the vehicle and confine it multiple times, according to police, but due to “rapidly changing dynamics,” an officer discharged their firearm. Witnesses told Postmedia that day that they saw police shoot through the driver and passenger windows of the van.
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Alberta’s police watchdog, the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team, said Wednesday its investigation into the matter is ongoing.
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The following story was published about two weeks after the May 2023 shooting of Wesley Davidson and Levon Fox.
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Friends say Memorial Drive police shooting victim was down on his luck
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By Michael Rodriguez / Calgary Herald / June 10, 2023
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One of two men who died after Calgary police opened fire on a stolen cube van on Memorial Drive last month has been identified by loved ones as Wesley Davidson, a former oil patch worker remembered as a man with a big heart who unfortunately fell on hard times.
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Davidson, 46, was involved in a low-speed police chase on the morning of May 29. Levon Fox Wildman was also shot and killed in the incident.
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The men had been reported to police by a security guard at a private property in Mayland Heights and fled the area in a stolen five-ton cube van. At the time, police said the van was driving erratically — having hit a barricade and a building — and multiple officers began tailing the vehicle as it headed down Memorial Drive.
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Police said officers attempted to pull the vehicle over and confine it multiple times, but due to “rapidly changing dynamics,” an officer — a 13-year member of the force — discharged their firearm. Witnesses told Postmedia they saw police shoot through the driver and passenger windows of the van.
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Davidson and one other man died at the scene while another was taken to hospital in police custody.
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‘He would help you any way he could’
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Jody, a long-time friend of Davidson who requested to be referred to only by his first name, said the man was like a brother to him. Davidson’s death — and the tragic circumstances surrounding it — has been gutting for people close to him.
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“Wes had a big heart, and he didn’t have much, but if you were in need, he would help you any way he could,” said Jody, who attended high school with Davidson in the northern Alberta town of Beaverlodge, located 40 kilometres west of Grande Prairie.
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Davidson formerly worked as a well tester in northern Alberta oil fields. But a workplace injury around 2008 that rendered him unable to do his job and an unsuccessful battle with the Workers’ Compensation Board — which his sister, Sheila Davidson, said he was still fighting this year — led him to turn to drugs amid increasingly difficult living conditions.
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Wesley Davidson was killed in a police shooting on Memorial drive on May 29, 2023.
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“He was in and out of addiction. And I think a lot of that had to do with the stress of, you know, not being able to work,” said Jody. “I mean, you spend quite a bit of your life working, and then all of a sudden, you get hurt — you have nothing, no backup. As soon as (WCB) says no, that’s it. You’re on the streets.”
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Davidson grew up “everywhere,” according to his sister, but was born in Fort McMurray. Sheila said their family frequently moved around Alberta when the two were children.
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She said she’d contacted Calgary police a couple of months before the shooting for a wellness check on her brother after she received a text message from him that was “ridiculously long, ridiculously weird and scary.”
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“I sent it to the Calgary police, and I said, ‘I am afraid for his health and safety.’ Period,” she said. “I got no response.
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“He was really struggling. Everybody dumped him and everybody ditched him and no one would help him.”
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She said her brother had several health issues and often found himself in fistfights. She believes her brother had chronic traumatic encephalopathy — a brain disease caused by repeated head injuries — and pushed for the medical examiner to test him for the condition after his death.
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“He had multiple, multiple medical issues he did not get help for. I tried,” said Sheila, who told Postmedia she formerly worked as a nurse. “I’d bet my life he had CTE … That’s my biggest thing — for public safety and for data purposes, they need to test his brain.”
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Over the last few years, Davidson had floated around Western Canada. He was in B.C. and returned to Alberta after his mother died in March. Calgary was planned as a stop on his way to see his father and other family members in Eastern Canada in the wake of his mother’s death.
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‘They did not deserve to be shot’
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Despite his struggles with addiction, Davidson was not violent by nature, Jody said.
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“That’s why I don’t understand why that officer did what he did. I really don’t,” he said.
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“I could see him going into a convenience store and maybe stealing a sandwich or a chocolate bar — just being in that situation, right? But he wasn’t violent; he was just down on his luck.”
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The police response, Jody said, was excessive. He doesn’t understand why police resorted to their firearms when there were “so many other options” available.
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“From what I’ve seen, they rolled into the meridian, and the police surrounded them. Then, I don’t know — cops just opened fire, I guess,” said Jody. “Whatever they did, they did not deserve to be shot.”
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Two people were shot and killed by police after a chase involving a stolen cube van on Memorial Drive near Edmonton Trail on Monday, May 29, 2023.
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Jody hopes people can be compassionate to his friend, whose addiction led him down an arduous path. Through it all, Jody says Davidson was loved and supported by his friends and family — even if he sometimes didn’t see it that way.
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“He did pull back from a lot of his friends because of his addiction. He didn’t want to be seen like that,” Jody said. “It’s sad. If you knew him — it’s sad.”
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The province’s police watchdog, the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team, is investigating CPS’s response to the incident. Sheila said the agency contacted her for a “mandatory report” immediately following her brother’s death.
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“(They) kept calling. I had to do a mandatory report with ASIRT 20 hours after my brother’s death,” she said, adding officials told her the investigation would take roughly a year.
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