Officer loses second bid to appeal assault conviction
Constable charged after video showed him body-slamming handcuffed woman
The Calgary police officer who body-slammed a handcuffed woman face-first to the floor won't get a second chance to appeal his conviction.
Alberta Court of Appeal Justice Anne Kirker on Thursday denied defence lawyer Alain Hepner's leave application to take Alexander Dunn's case to the province's top court.
Dunn was convicted by provincial court Judge Michelle Christopher of assault causing bodily harm for using a “dynamic take down” on since-deceased Dalia Kafi during her Dec. 13, 2017, arrest.
Because the Crown proceeded summarily instead of by indictment, the case was appealed to a Court of King's Bench judge.
On Nov. 19, 2021, Justice Robert Hall ruled the video evidence of Dunn's interaction with Kafi was all that Christopher needed to find the suspended officer guilty.
In denying leave to appeal the case further, Kirker said Hepner failed to establish a justification for taking the case to the province's top court. “I am not satisfied the applicant has established … that a second level of appeal is warranted,” Kirker said.
One of the grounds of appeal Hepner proposed was that Christopher erred in finding Dunn became frustrated with Kafi and overreacted when he slammed her to the floor at the arrest processing unit.
Kirker noted the Crown didn't advance that argument at trial, but Dunn was asked by his trial lawyer whether that was his motivation and he denied it.
“In my view, the applicant was clearly aware of the case he had to meet,” Kirker said.
“The suggestion that he acted out of anger or frustration was put to the applicant by his counsel and the applicant gave evidence about his emotional state in explaining his actions.
“He relied upon the assertion that he was not angry or upset in any way in urging the trial judge to reasonably doubt whether the Crown had negated the applicant's asserted belief the complainant had slipped her hands from the cuffs, which justified the actions which he took,” Kirker said.
“The trial judge rejected the evidence, which she was entitled to do.”
In upholding Dunn's conviction, Hall said the video evidence was compelling. “They say a picture is worth a thousand words,” the judge said in his ruling, after taking a break during arguments to view the video.
Christopher sentenced Dunn to a 30-day conditional sentence in the community, which included 15 days of house arrest. A Crown appeal of that sentence is still outstanding.
Dunn, 36, remains suspended without pay pending a conclusion to the case.