THUNDER BAY — A local man is accusing a city police officer of assault.
Brandon Chicoine said he was punched, kneed and dragged by a police officer and then released when he was identified as a helpful bystander and not the culprit of an alleged robbery last Friday.
Chicoine has filed a complaint with the Law Enforcement Complaints Agency (LECA).
When contacted about the allegations, a Thunder Bay Police Service spokesperson said everyone has the right to file an LECA complaint and that the service is committed to following the LECA process.
However, a statement posted to social media on Saturday appears to confirm that police are looking into an incident that matches some key details of Chicoine's account.
“Officers with the TBPS Primary Response Unit responded on Friday evening to a call regarding a robbery in progress. We are aware of concerns shared on social media about this incident and we will be reviewing this situation in its entirety. We remain committed to serving and protecting our community,” reads the police Facebook post.
According to Chicoine, the incident occurred after he left a convenience store on Frederica Street shortly before 11 p.m. last Friday, where he said he had helped another customer detain a man, who had allegedly been caught stealing, while a store clerk called the police.
Chicoine said he had left the store and was less than a block away when the alleged thief ran past him. He said a police cruiser stopped behind him about 30 seconds later and he pointed in the direction the man had run.
Chicoine said he continued walking another block down the street and the police pulled up in front of him.
“I figured they would just ask me if I had seen the man or where I was coming from (and) where I was going, kind of thing. And as I walked up to the police cruiser, the officer got out of the vehicle. He shines lights at me. He asked me my name. I told him my name,” said Chicoine.
He said he can't remember exactly what the officer said next, but he alleges the officer grabbed him by his right arm, pushed him up against the police cruiser and put his hand on the back of his head and pushed his face up against the vehicle.
“I was shouting at him that, ‘I had just seen you guys. I pointed you in the direction of where the actual guy went.’ And then, before he had even gotten my left hand into the cuffs, he had dragged me to the ground (and) threw me into a puddle,” said Chicoine.
On the ground, Chicoine said the officer punched and kneed him, dragged his face across the ground and stuck his knee into his back while pulling his right shoulder back.
“At this point, I was scared. I was freaking out. This was a pretty large man. He could have easily gotten both of my hands into the cuffs while I was standing, but then he proceeded to beat me while I was on the ground,” said Chicoine.
He said he didn’t defend himself in any way.
After that, Chicoine said the officer pulled him to his feet, got his second hand into cuffs and was walking him to the police cruiser when the other customer from the store pulled up, telling the police that Chicoine was not the one who was stealing, had helped out and they had gotten the wrong guy.
He said the officer then apologized and took him out of the cuffs. Chicoine said the officer explained to him that it was his fault because “he was resisting arrest.”
“I told him that I was not resisting and I was forcefully beaten for nothing,” said Chicoine.
After driving him home, he said the officer told him that he was not going to charge him for resisting arrest. The police have not indicated to the media that Chicoine is facing any charges.
The officer should not have used so much force, especially without asking any questions, Chicoine said.
“He could have asked me where I was coming from, where I'm going. He could have nicely put me into the vehicle. He could drove me back to the store and talked to the clerk. The clerk could have identified me right away,” said Chicoine.
He said he hopes to see the officer lose his badge as a result of the LECA investigation.
LECA director Stephen Leach confirmed he has received a public complaint arising from the incident, but due to confidentiality, he cannot provide any further details and believes that commenting on allegations of police misconduct would compromise his ability to then investigate these allegations in a fair manner.
