Cold Lake RCMP officer charged with kicking man in face

An RCMP officer from Cold Lake has been charged with common assault after an arrest last year became violent and a handcuffed, hearing impaired man was kicked in the face.

The charge stems from an investigation into Const. Chad McRae’s conduct Sept. 21, 2012, when he responded to a rowdy party at a community hall near Cold Lake and ended up arresting Richard Claybert, who is hearing impaired.

The arrest, captured on a cellphone video and uploaded to YouTube, shows an RCMP officer kicking a man in the face while he is handcuffed, lying on the ground and questioning police officers.

The one-minute video generated public outrage, but police said it didn’t show that the man being arrested was 300 pounds, looking for a fight and taunting officers.

Supt. Randy McGinnis said at the time that Claybert, then 21, was acting like a mixed martial arts fighter preparing to take on police. At one point, McGinnis said Claybert ran at an officer, stopped, laughed and turned away.

Claybert refused to leave the party, and wouldn’t lie down when he was told he was under arrest, RCMP said at the time.

The man was so big, officers had to use two sets of handcuffs to subdue him, the RCMP said. When Claybert resisted and tried to turn over, an officer had to use his foot to subdue him.

Claybert later told CTV News his ribs and legs were injured, but he didn’t go to hospital for treatment.

McRae remains at work, performing full duties. His first court appearance is Jan. 8.