Edmond Yu

Edmond Yu, born Edmond Wai-Hong Yu, (October 2, 1961 - February 20, 1997) former medical student whose death at the hands of Toronto police sparked debates about the police's use of force[?], mental illness, and the treatment of those diagnosed with a mental illness.

When young he won the Hong Kong city boxing championship.

He attended York University from 1982 to 1984, studying pre-medicine[?].

In 1984 he was accepted as a medical student at the University of Toronto.

In 1985 the police arrested Yu and took him to the Clark Institute of Psychiatry[?], where he was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.

On February 20, 1997 Edmond Yu allegedly assaulted a woman at a bus stop, then boarded a bus. Police attempted to board the bus, then Yu, according to witnesses, raised a small (perhaps toy) hammer. Constable Lou Pasquino fired six shots, hitting Yu three times.

An official inquest in 1989-1999 cleared the police of wrongdoing and resulted in a number of recommendations.

A foundation to fund "a housing project for homeless men with mental health problems" has been set up in Edmond Yu's name. There have been a number of other memorials to Yu, such as The Edmond Yu House, which claims to be "a low-stress, high support, and non-medical organization for psychiatric survivors of the Mental Health System who also experience homelessness and would be considered 'hard to house' people," and The Edmond Yu Project.

David Hawkins made a documentary on Yu, The Life and Death of Edmond Yu[?].