Unlawful Arrest (and Tasering)
Halifax police are claiming there’s more to the story, but it would seem to me that if the arrest of a teenage girl was unlawful to begin with that the tasering of the teen should also be unlawful…. don’t ya think?
Halifax police clear officers who used Taser on teen
Halifax Regional Police claim there’s more to the story of the 17-year-old girl who was shocked by a Taser when three police officers arrested her in her bedroom last February, but say they’re not at liberty to divulge details because an appeal may be launched.
Three police officers couldn’t subdue one teenage girl without resorting to a double dose of tasering?
One thing in the story that does hearten me coming from the bench is this statement
“I find the police acted outside the scope of their authority in arresting [the girl] and that she was entitled to resist and committed no offence in doing so, and I acquit her of the charges before the court.”
(emphasis mine)
Understand this clearly, it is not against the law to resist an unlawful arrest, nor is it against the law to fight against those attempting to unlawfully detain you – regardless of the uniform they may be wearing or the authority they claim to have.
Understand this clearly, it is not against the law to resist an unlawful arrest, nor is it against the law to fight against those attempting to unlawfully detain you – regardless of the uniform they may be wearing or the authority they claim to have.
While you are correct, you had better be damn sure that you are in the right before you resist. No matter what, you will be forced to prove your case in a court of law, and that costs a lot money.
I completely agree with you in your point, so don’t get me wrong, but the way our system is geared, the courts will believe the police over Joe-shmuck who cries he was arrest wrongfully.
Thankfully many Judges know when a cop is bullshitting, and I have seen Judges bend over backwards to allow Police officers to “correct” themselves. In one case the Officer who lied, even in face of hard documentary evidence which could not be refuted, the Officer continued to lie. In the end it only cost my friend $30,000.00 in legal defence fees and he no option viable option to recovering that money, but it was better than spending five years in jail for something he was innocent of.
Indeed you speak the truth Zorpheous, but until such time as people are willing to step up and refuse to go spread eagle against the wall, lay down on the ground simply because they are told to, or accept being assaulted because “that’s the way it is”, that’s the way it will always be.
I have met some very good cops, and I have seen others who instigated confrontations and then assault and arrest those who defied them – Montebello is a really good example of that ain’t it?
If you or I did that the justice system would have a word to describe us and that word would be criminal. Until the same word is used to describe police who engage in those tactics, and until the penelaties for doing so are also the same, we’re not living in a just society, and only the people can change that.