Inquest begins in the death of Andreas Chinnery

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An inquest began, Monday, into the death of Hamilton teen Andreas Chinnery who was shot by police back in 2011.

It’s been five years since Chinnery was shot and killed by Hamilton police.

The inquest was first announced back in 2012 and finally got underway.

On the night of February 2, 2011 police were called to Chinnery’s Barton Street East apartment for a noise complaint.

Police showed up after neighbours called complaining they heard shouting, swearing and banging.

The court heard he was destroying the apartment with a baseball bat and yelling “die… die…die”

Police said he answered the door holding the baseball bat.

The court heard from witnesses who lived in neighbouring apartments all with their own account of what happened.

Some said they heard police yell “drop it”, possibly several times before 2 shots were fired.

A downstairs neighbour said he heard Chinnery yell “Kill me”. Another recalled him yelling “Shoot me”

The two officers who responded that night have been cleared by the Province’s Special Investigations Unit

Chinnery’s father, Robert, has questioned the police’s account of what happened that night

The court also heard from Chinnery’s sister, a friend, and his roommate who all spoke about his passion for his rap music.

The court also heard about his possible mental health struggles in the time leading up to his death.

The inquest is to last 2 weeks and the court will hear from more than 20 witnesses.

The inquest resumes on Tuesday at John Sopinka Courthouse.