ASIRT clears police of wrongdoing after woman’s elbow broken
Officers did nothing wrong during scuffle with intoxicated group, watchdog finds
The province’s police watchdog has cleared officers of wrongdoing after a 22-year-old woman suffered a broken elbow while interfering in the arrest of her mother on Whyte Avenue in September 2016.
Early on Sept. 17, 2016, two uniformed Edmonton city police officers approached a group of eight people on Whyte Avenue near 103 Street, all of whom were intoxicated to varying degrees, the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) said in a Wednesday release.
After seeing one of the men with an open beer, the officers took the drink, poured it out and gave him a ticket, the release said. While officers were issuing the ticket, however, a woman in the group tried to interfere and the officers put her in handcuffs.
The woman’s daughter then became upset and took a run at one of the officers, the ASIRT release said.
She was then either pushed or ran into the officer’s braced, outstretched arms and she fell backwards, hitting the pavement.
As the officers called for others in the group to stay back, the rest of the group joined the fray and the officers used pepper spray on them, the ASIRT release said.
During this time, the daughter tried to pull open the doors of a marked police van where her mother was being held.
After struggling with officers, the daughter was handcuffed, said ASIRT.
The woman refused treatment at the scene for injuries and was released. Later, it was determined she had suffered a fractured elbow and required surgery.
An investigation determined officers did not use any more force than was necessary in the lawful execution of their duties and there were no reasonable grounds to believe the officers committed any criminal offence, ASIRT executive director Susan Hughson said in the release.
ASIRT is responsible for independently investigating an incidents involving Alberta police that result in serious injury or death, as well as sensitive allegations of misconduct.