D
DannyDeVito
Guest
Cops are here to protect us not threaten us.
The homeless man was wearing only a short-sleeved T-shirt and jean shorts that reached his calves.
Lafreniere said the officer’s comments during the exchange on Thursday afternoon, when Montreal was in the middle of a deep freeze, were “unacceptable” and “inexplicable.”
The comments were caught on tape by a passer-by who can be heard telling the officer he isn’t allowed to utter such threats.
“To me it was a humiliation for the guy,” said Adis Simidzija.
“It was like a game for the police. I was just like, this is unreal.”
“It really isn’t what we expect of our officers,” Lafreniere said. “It is unacceptable and, especially, inexplicable.”
Lafreniere said the man refused the officer’s requests that he get into a police cruiser or to go to a shelter for the homeless.
“I can’t tell you right now whether his (the officer’s) intention was to do what he threatened to do,” Lafreniere said. “But the end result is very sad.”
Other police officers eventually found the man and finally persuaded him to go to hospital.
Lafreniere said the Montreal force has had two volunteers on each shift all this week who have gone out to help the homeless.
Mayor Denis Coderre said Friday he spoke to Montreal police Chief Marc Parent as soon as he heard about the incident on social media.
“There is nothing that excuses that kind of remark,” Coderre said at a ceremony at the Port of Montreal.
“What was said and done was unacceptable and it can’t happen again.”
The mayor cautioned, however, that mental-health issues can be a complicating factor in such encounters.
Coderre reiterated his commitment to helping the homeless with a long-term strategy.
“When was the last time you met a homeless person, looked him in the eye and asked him his name,” he said. “It’s a question of dignity, as well.”
Mayor Denis Coderre weighed in on the video, calling the officer’s behaviour “unacceptable.” He said he spoke about the incident to police Chief Marc Parent.
The Montreal police also called the officer’s words unacceptable, adding that he would be met by his commanding officer on Friday.
Matthew Pearce, Director General of Montreal’s largest men’s shelter, said police have made strides in dealing with the homeless in the city and called the incident a setback.
“The police can’t afford to be saying these kinds of things. It’s a bad technique to reduce tensions,” said Mr. Pearce, head of the Old Brewery Mission. “In the deep cold, people can’t survive out there.”
His mission’s 240 beds were full overnight and housed another 60 men on mattresses in the cafeteria. He said he was familiar with the man in the video, who is known to be homeless.
André Cantin, an Environment Canada meteorologist, said that human skin can freeze superficially within minutes with a wind chill of -40 C. Longer-term exposure can cause hypothermia.
The homeless man was wearing only a short-sleeved T-shirt and jean shorts that reached his calves.
Lafreniere said the officer’s comments during the exchange on Thursday afternoon, when Montreal was in the middle of a deep freeze, were “unacceptable” and “inexplicable.”
The comments were caught on tape by a passer-by who can be heard telling the officer he isn’t allowed to utter such threats.
“To me it was a humiliation for the guy,” said Adis Simidzija.
“It was like a game for the police. I was just like, this is unreal.”
“It really isn’t what we expect of our officers,” Lafreniere said. “It is unacceptable and, especially, inexplicable.”
Lafreniere said the man refused the officer’s requests that he get into a police cruiser or to go to a shelter for the homeless.
“I can’t tell you right now whether his (the officer’s) intention was to do what he threatened to do,” Lafreniere said. “But the end result is very sad.”
Other police officers eventually found the man and finally persuaded him to go to hospital.
Lafreniere said the Montreal force has had two volunteers on each shift all this week who have gone out to help the homeless.
Mayor Denis Coderre said Friday he spoke to Montreal police Chief Marc Parent as soon as he heard about the incident on social media.
“There is nothing that excuses that kind of remark,” Coderre said at a ceremony at the Port of Montreal.
“What was said and done was unacceptable and it can’t happen again.”
The mayor cautioned, however, that mental-health issues can be a complicating factor in such encounters.
Coderre reiterated his commitment to helping the homeless with a long-term strategy.
“When was the last time you met a homeless person, looked him in the eye and asked him his name,” he said. “It’s a question of dignity, as well.”
Mayor Denis Coderre weighed in on the video, calling the officer’s behaviour “unacceptable.” He said he spoke about the incident to police Chief Marc Parent.
The Montreal police also called the officer’s words unacceptable, adding that he would be met by his commanding officer on Friday.
Matthew Pearce, Director General of Montreal’s largest men’s shelter, said police have made strides in dealing with the homeless in the city and called the incident a setback.
“The police can’t afford to be saying these kinds of things. It’s a bad technique to reduce tensions,” said Mr. Pearce, head of the Old Brewery Mission. “In the deep cold, people can’t survive out there.”
His mission’s 240 beds were full overnight and housed another 60 men on mattresses in the cafeteria. He said he was familiar with the man in the video, who is known to be homeless.
André Cantin, an Environment Canada meteorologist, said that human skin can freeze superficially within minutes with a wind chill of -40 C. Longer-term exposure can cause hypothermia.
