O.P.P. BEHAVIOUR APPEARS VERY STRANGE

 Today's Waterloo Region Record has a story on page A4 titled "SIU clears OPP officers for Fergus arrest in April". The sub title is "Director's report found the officers' conduct was not improper".  From that point onwards however I found the story to have glaring gaps in it and definitely not to be particularly clear that the officers behaviour was either proper or legal. Now perchance the unnamed author (Metroland) simply wasn't given all the information necessary or maybe he wanted to make his story ...let's say curious.

We are told that a pedestrian approached officers in a public place (St. Andrew St. West) and advised them that he was recording their conduct. Now certainly in the U.S. that is perfectly legal and reasonable conduct provided the citizen is not obstructing or interfering with the police in the performance of their duties. Apparently the OPP officer in Fergus however immediately advised the citizen that he was under arrest for "public intoxication". Now firstly I very much doubt that pedestrians are routinely charged with public intoxication in Canada unless they are really, really impaired and even then I expect that most might (in winter time at least) be simply taken to the police station and given a bed in a jail cell for the night to sober up. 

Now the OPP officer however immediately wrestled the citizen to the ground and attempted to handcuff his hands behind his back. Other officers also piled on and assisted in handcuffing the citizen who apparently felt that throwing him to the ground and handcuffing his hands behind his back was unnecessary and abusive. The OPP officers also felt the need to punch the citizen in the face three times allegedly in order to gain compliance to what arguably was an illegal assault and arrest. In the end the arrested citizen was taken to hospital for treatment of a broken kneecap.

Guess what? The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) deemed the OPP officers' conduct was not improper. For that to be the case and for the public to have any confidence in either the OPP's behaviour or the SIU's report, a whole lot more information is required. For example was the citizen convicted on "public intoxication" or were the charges quietly dropped? Secondly why with the citizen face down on the ground and with multiple officers assisting, was it necessary to punch him three times in the face? Thirdly when exactly did the broken kneecap occur? Was he kicked or was the impact with the ground that forceful that the kneecap was broken when he hit the pavement? According to the story in the newspaper there was immediate and aggressive action by the OPP against the citizen after he advised that he was recording them. Is this an example of de-escalation by police when dealing with the concerned public. Are we so far down the road of police arbitrary authority that we are supposed to be happy that the OPP didn't shoot and kill the unarmed citizen?