At least 10 police vehicles were at the scene of a fatal shooting at a gas station at 41st Avenue and Knight Street in south Vancouver on Dec. 10, 2007.

An investigation by Vancouver police has cleared a fellow officer of any wrongdoing in the fatal shooting of Reuben Coleman, 21, at a gas station nearly two years ago.

Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu said the officer was in a life-or-death situation, and that he acted appropriately when he shot Coleman.

The incident began when police responded to a report of an impaired driver at the gas station near 41st Avenue and Knight Street on the afternoon of Dec. 10, 2007.

Chu said when the officer went to frisk Coleman, he pulled out a handgun. A struggle ensued and two shots were fired, hitting the pavement.

"Mr. Coleman subsequently broke free and pointed his gun directly at him," Chu said.

But Coleman didn't shoot, Chu said. Instead he got into his car and started to drive away, still pointing the handgun at the officer.

"In defence of his life, our officer then fired his service pistol, resulting in the death of Mr. Coleman," Chu said.

Officers investigating officers

The investigation into the shooting was conducted by the officer's fellow officers with the Vancouver Police Department, a practice that has been called into question in recent years following a series of RCMP shootings in B.C.

In September, RCMP brass in B.C. and the chiefs of several municipal police forces said it was time the provincial government set up a new independent agency to investigate allegations of misconduct by police officers, rather than have police investigate themselves.

But Chu was quick to point out that in this case, the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner agreed with police findings.

"In this case, the investigation was thorough, it was contemporaneous," Chu said.

"If the OPCC had any concerns, he would have gotten back to us, and any questions they had, we would look into those matters. But as I said, there was video of the incident and several independent witnesses."

The name of the officer involved was not released by police, but at the time of the shooting police said he was a veteran of the force with at least 15 years' experience. Chu said he has since returned to work.