Osoyoos beach shooter loses appeal for Oliver pharmacy arson

A Oliver man jailed for seven years for firing a gun on a crowded beach in Osoyoos on Canada Day has failed in his appeal for a separate conviction for burning down a pharmacy.

A panel of three BC Court of Appeal Justices wasn’t swayed that the original judge in the case had mistaken Steven Gallagher in CCTV footage for someone else.

Gallagher was convicted for break and enter and arson at the Remedy RX Pharmacy in Oliver in 2021.

According to a Nov. 27 BC Court of Appeal decision, the only issue at the trial was identification and the judge accepted the evidence of two police officers who identified Gallagher from CCTV footage.

However, Gallagher argued the Mounties were biased against him because of his reputation with the police.

The decision said the night of the arson, police had been to Gallagher’s home after getting a call about gunshots in the area.

Gallagher spoke to the police and denied that any shots were heard in the area. He took them into his home to look around.

“The officers saw no evidence of criminal activity,” Justice Bruce Butler said in the decision. “Mr. Gallagher became agitated at some point during the tour, stating words to the effect of ‘I don’t know why you cops don’t like me’ and listed his complaints.”

He then escorted the officers to their car.

Several hours later, at about 4 a.m., police heard gunshots outside the detachment and found bullet holes in the bumper of one of the police cars. A few minutes later, they got a call that a pick-up truck was on fire, and arrived at the scene to find the truck and a nearby pharmacy ablaze.

CCTV footage showed someone, whose face was obscured by a hoodie, breaking into the pharmacy and setting it ablaze.

The original judge noted that although the individual’s face was covered as they walked out of the burning pharmacy, the “temptation of grabbing a refreshing post-arson drink” proved too great, and as he reached into the cooler, the CCTV captured his face.

“Both officers saw the video soon after the arson. The officers were asked if they recognized the person in the video, and both immediately indicated that they had no doubt Mr. Gallagher was the figure in the pharmacy video,” the decision read.

While Gallagher argued the officers’ evidence should be ignored as it was tainted by confirmation bias and “groupthink,” the Appeal Court wasn’t swayed.

The judge also identified Gallagher in the CCTV video.

“His findings were not unreasonable and are supported by the evidence,” Justice Butler ruled, dismissing the appeal.