Items
Tag
Discreditable conduct
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Unhoused Indigenous individuals rounded up by EPS and transported to other side of city in "sweatbox" incident
On or around May 20th, 2005, a group of 9 unhoused Indigenous peoples--6 men and 3 women--were picked up by EPS officers Hannas, Blackburn and Sauter on Whyte Avenue and locked in a police van. No one was told why they were being detained. The van lacked seatbelts and there was not enough room for all individuals to sit on the bench, forcing some to sit on the floor. The van was also hot and crowded, but officers refused to roll down windows or turn on air conditioning. They also denied bathroom requests from the individuals, resulting in one woman urinating on the floor of the vehicle. After being driven around for about 90 minutes with frequent sudden stops and forceful turns that made them fall into each other, they were later let out of the van in the area of 127 Avenue and 82 Street on the other side of the city. -
Victim experiencing panic attack and suicidal thoughts encouraged by officer to "go ahead" and kill himself
Tyler Lychak was experiencing a panic attack and thoughts of suicide when he was assaulted by Edmonton Police Officer Binoy Prabhu on November 3, 2017. The incident began when Lychek went to the west Edmonton Police Station to report concerns about someone who may have been selling drugs to minors outside of a nearby store. Upon exiting the police station, Lychaks foot hit one of the sliding doors and dislodged it, causing a loud noise (which officer Derek Cranna testified to in a disciplinary hearing). Officer Prabhu and another officer followed Lychak to the parking lot where there was an argument. Lychak was arrested for mischief, placed in handcuffs, and escorted back into the police station. Lychak was brought into a holding cell and was searched by the officers. Officer Prabhu found a pressurized spray can of Sabre Dog and Coyote Attack Deterrent in Lychaks pocket and Lychak was informed that he was under arrest for possession of a weapon. Lychak stated that he was frightened of Officer Prabhu and he began hyperventilating. While escorting Lychak to the phone room, Prabhu grabbed Lychak and pulled him with enough force that Lychak fell to the ground. Lychak told investigating officers that he hit his head on the wall and suffered bruising to his hip and back along with soreness to his neck and shoulder. Prabhus use of force was captured on police station closed-circuit cameras. Lychak used the phone to call 911, stating that he was having a panic attack and the police were not helping him. After Lychak made the phone call, Prabhu returned him to the holding cell. Lychak told the officer he was going to try to kill himself and that he had attempted suicide in the past. Prabhu responded with go ahead. In the disciplinary hearing that followed this incident, Prabhu admitted to the above statement and the use of excessive force. "I basically relive it every day," Lychak told CBC News. "It goes through my head every day and it's really hard to block it out&I want to do this so that in the future, people with mental disabilities or mental problems can get treated better by the police. I believe that training is necessary to save lives." In 2015, Prabu was charged with assaulting his wife. The charge was withdrawn in 2016 when Prabhu admitted that he had caused his wife to fear personal injury. Prabhu entered a one-year peace bond as a result. Prabhu received a criminal charge led to two separate findings of discreditable conduct. The first finding occurred two weeks after Prabhu's encounter with Lychak. He was given a 30-hour suspension without pay and ordered to seek counseling. Prabhu went on a six-month medical leave in December 2017 and sought psychological help. He also admitted to a neglect of duty misconduct charge that dated back to October 2017. -
22-year-old on crutches assaulted by off duty police officer
On December 18th, 2005 early in the morning, the victim was hailing a cab with his crutch. He had recently undergone knee surgery. Officer Wasylyshen and some colleagues were off-duty and drinking, and had just gotten out of a cab. Wasylyshen noticed the individual and started to verbally attack him (calling him a "cripple"). In return the victim yelled back. Wasylyshen approached the victim and struck him with a closed fist in the left ear. Wasylyshen's friends held him back after this. The victim then called two friends, who arrived shortly after. The group of three crossed the street. Wasylyshen followed them, there was a violent exchange between Wasylyshen and the victim's two friends, in which the friends pinned the police officer to the ground. At this point two loss prevention officers from a 7-11 decided to get involved. While they were separating the group, Wasylyshen uttered threats to the officers and struck one of them.