The Vancouver Police Board was asked to change the handcuff rules after the arrest of an Indian and his granddaughter

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After Maxwell Johnson filed a complaint with the BC Human Rights Court, the VPD issued a statement saying the circumstances were “regrettable.”

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Screenshot of the December 9, 2020 arrest of Maxwell Johnson and his granddaughter, Tori. The two were detained by Vancouver police after the bank asked them about the Indian status cards issued by their government.
Screenshot of the December 9, 2020 arrest of Maxwell Johnson and his granddaughter, Tori. The two were detained by Vancouver police after the bank asked them about the Indian status cards issued by their government. PNG

The Vancouver Police Board will hear a report Thursday recommending that the force change its handcuff policy after the arrest of an Indian and his 12-year-old granddaughter in a bank in 2019.

The police board says it released a review of the department’s protocols when Maxwell Johnson and his granddaughter were handcuffed after trying to open an account at the Bank of Montreal using their government-issued status cards.

The board’s report says it was later determined that there was no criminal activity involved and began reviewing its handcuff policy after the arrest and subsequent media attention.

The new policy recommends that handcuffs be used when reasonable, commensurate with risk, and necessary to fulfill a legitimate police objective when the officer believes wearing handcuffs is necessary.

Maxwell Johnson and his granddaughter, Tori, in Vancouver on January 20, 2020.
Maxwell Johnson and his granddaughter, Tori, in Vancouver on January 20, 2020. Photo by Arlen Redekop /PNG

Johnson filed a complaint with the BC Human Rights Court last year alleging that the bank called 911 for an identification problem because they are indigenous, while accusing police of racial discrimination that led to their arrest and use of handcuffs. .

The police department issued a statement after the human rights case began saying the circumstances were “regrettable” and understandably traumatic for Johnson and his family.

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Reference-vancouversun.com

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