Cop dies of ALS triggered by fight with suspect
April 21 2006 | Passages
Copyright 2006 The Vancouver Province, a division of CanWest MediaWorks Publication Inc.
All Rights Reserved
The Vancouver Province (British Columbia)
April 21, 2006 Friday
Final Edition
SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A8
LENGTH: 530 words
BYLINE: Stuart Hunter, The Province
A full-honours police funeral will be held for an Abbotsford police constable who died from Lou Gehrig's disease, which doctors say was triggered 4 1/2 years ago during a fight while making an arrest.
Several hundred officers from across North America are expected to attend the memorial service for Const. John Goyer, of North Vancouver, who died Wednesday from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Goyer, 40, a three-year officer, never returned to work after the Sept. 26, 2001, altercation with a man who resisted arrest during a domestic dispute.
"His death was considered in the line of duty," Abbotsford police spokesman Sgt. Brett Crosby-Jones said. "It was a work-related injury. His symptoms kept progressing and never went away."
Goyer, writing in the 2003 edition of the Thin Blue Line magazine, said: "ALS is a horrible, disgusting disease that I wouldn't wish on anyone. It robs you of your strength but leaves your mind free to suffer the effects.
"I had been a fit, strong and active young man beginning a promising career in policing. I played classical guitar and planned to teach after retiring. Then, in one moment, my life changed and everything that I worked so hard for was gone.
"But because of this tragedy, I learned how many people cared about me. I truly hope that no one out there gets ALS, but if you do, I pray that you have as much support as the people from the Abbotsford Police Department have given me."
Dr. Andrew Eisen, a world-renowned expert in ALS, said the link between trauma and the onset of the disease may be "tenuous," but in the case of Goyer the evidence was so overwhelming that he testified on the officer's behalf when his application for a disability pension was questioned.
"Trauma was a trigger and there is a difference between a trigger and a cause," said Eisen, an emeritus professor at the University of B.C. He said the extremely fast onset of Goyer's symptoms, such as tingling in his arms and weakness, which came on in a matter of days, and the fact he was much younger than most people who get ALS made him certain the fight triggered the disease.
People are prone to ALS based on a combination of genetics and environmental factors. Eisen noted less than 10 per cent of ALS sufferers have an overt family history. Of that 10 per cent, less than 20 per cent have an identifiable gene.
Crosby-Jones said Goyer was a well-respected officer known for his quiet, calm demeanour and sense of humour, which he maintained throughout his battle with the disease.
"I myself had a health concern a few years ago, and he took the time out to try and help me even though his crisis was so much more severe than mine," Crosby-Jones said.
"He was a very good team player -- we've all lost a friend."
A stalwart in hockey and soccer and a volunteer firefighter, Goyer was also a classically trained guitarist. He had hoped to teach classical guitar in retirement and now the police department is looking at establishing a scholarship in his name.
