Watch: Hamilton police board ‘concerned by officer’s actions’ during gas station arrest
Published August 11, 2022 at 3:29 pm
The Hamilton Police Services Board issued a statement on Thursday after a witness-submitted court video showed an officer kicking a man in the head multiple times during an arrest.
The board said it was “concerned by the officer’s actions” and has requested a review of all policies and procedures related to “prisoner handling and use of force to ensure they are current and reflective of best practices.”
The incident occurred during a May 26, 2022, arrest at a Hamilton gas station. Multiple officers can be seen in the video tackling Patrick Tomchuk to the ground on suspicion of vehicle theft. On several occasions, an officer can be seen kicking Tomchuk in the head. At one point, Tomchuk appears to lose consciousness.
The officer, Const. Brian Wren has been charged with assault and was suspended from duty.
The video was shown during Tomchuk’s bail hearing last week, which was granted by the judge. He had been charged with assault on a police officer, resisting arrest, and vehicle theft in the gas station incident.
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When the decision to grant bail was read, Justice Linda Crawford said she took Tomchuk’s identity as an Indigenous person and the effects of colonialism into consideration.
The crown, meanwhile, referred to Tomchuk’s “horrendous record” in its arguments, including vehicle thefts, fleeing police, drug use, and 27 convictions for breaches of court orders.
Hamilton’s police board says it was notified of Wren’s actions immediately after the Hamilton Police Service (HPS) reviewed the video, as was the Special Investigations Unit (SIU).
“When the SIU did not invoke their mandate to investigate this incident, Hamilton Police commenced a criminal investigation,” according to the board’s statement.
HPS also reached out to the Hamilton Regional Indian Centre to inform them of the incident and Wren’s charges.
The board added that it acknowledges that systemic changes need to be addresses, including the historical relationship between law enforcement and Indigenous peoples in Canada.”
Hamilton Regional Indian Centre (HRIC) executive director Audrey Davis reccomended a third-party investigation into the assault, for officers to wear bodycams, and to consider charging Wren with a hate crime.
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