SPVM Officers Were Found Not Criminally Responsible For The Death Of A Man They Restrained
The incident occurred last year.
Montreal police (SPVM) officers were found not criminally responsible for the death of a man on April 26, 2020. The Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DPCP) made this determination following a report from the Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes (BEI).
The DPCP outlined the events leading up to the man's death in a press release.
In the late evening on April 25, 2020, police were called to assist with an Urgences-Santé call regarding an unconscious man. They found the man conscious when they arrived on the scene. The man signed a refusal of treatment form so police and paramedics left, according to the DPCP statement.
Hours later, at around 4:35 a.m. on April 26, police and paramedics got an emergency call for the same individual.
According to the statement, "they noted that the man was on the ground and made incomprehensible remarks. He was confused, aggressive and kicked into the void."
The police are said to have restrained the man and handcuffed him in order for the paramedics to take his vitals, eventually moving him to an ambulance "using the EMS blanket on the paramedics' chair."
The DPCP says the man stopped screaming outside the apartment building on the way to the ambulance. Paramedics then realized he was in cardiorespiratory arrest and began resuscitation attempts.
He was declared dead at the hospital.
The DCPC determined that the police "used the force necessary in the circumstances to restrain the man so that he was transported outside his building and then taken to the hospital. Officers used this force to assist ambulance attendants who were unable to provide required patient care."
"The analysis of the evidence does not reveal the commission of a criminal act by the SPVM police officers involved in this event," the DPCP explained.
This article's cover image is used for illustrative purposes only.