The family of a Smiths Falls, Ont., woman is demanding justice after a video surfaced online that appears to show the woman being dragged from a police cruiser and held to the ground after her arrest.
The video, posted anonymously on social media, appears to show one of the officers dragging the handcuffed woman by her left leg from the back seat of Smiths Falls Police Service cruiser parked at a crosswalk. The officer then appears to pin the woman to the ground for about 20 seconds before pulling her to her feet and pushing her back into the car.
Sarah Black, who told CBC she’s the sister of the woman in the video, said she and her parents were distraught after seeing it.
“It is absolutely heartbreaking to watch,” Black told CBC.
According to Smiths Falls police, the 29-year-old woman was arrested after officers were called to a business on Main Street E. where she was allegedly causing a disturbance, including acting belligerently and throwing a table against a wall. The same woman was suspected in an alleged assault that had occurred earlier that evening at a different location.
Police said the woman was arrested and placed in the back of the cruiser where she began spitting and kicking a Plexiglas divider.
The woman is facing one count each of causing a disturbance and uttering threats, and two counts each of mischief under $5,000, assaulting police and failure to comply with probation. She was scheduled to appear in court in Perth, Ont., on Wednesday.
McKenzie LeClair has now come forward as the woman who captured the incident on video from a nearby window.
“When I started recording I thought it was just going to be like any other arrest, and then I [saw] how the police officer handled her and my stomach just dropped,” she said.
LeClair posted the video on Facebook where it quickly gained traction and sparked outrage among some members of the local community.
Black, who lives in California, said she heard about it from her mother. The family isn’t contesting the woman’s arrest, Black said, but they do want the police officers involved to be held accountable for how they handled the situation.
“There is no reason that that kind of force was necessary in that scenario,” said Black.
Black explained her sister is a “complex person” who has a history of mental health and substance use issues that her family has been trying to help her manage for many years.
“My sister needs help, not more trauma, and officers clearly need better training for mental health intervention if this is how they behave in these kinds of situations,” Black said. “The officer should be ashamed.”
Smiths Falls police Chief Jodi Empey confirmed in a statement that she has been made aware of the video circulating on social media.
Empey said both officers who appear in the video have been placed on administrative duties pending an investigation, which will be handled by a different police service.
“We have determined this matter to be an institutional conflict and therefore must refer it to another police service for investigation,” Empey said.
Cornwall Police Service will conduct the investigation, a spokesperson for Smiths Falls Police said, adding that Empey would not be commenting further.
Black said she and her family are awaiting the results of that investigation.
“We want accountability — proper accountability including a full and fair investigation — and if found in the wrong, we want the officer or officers responsible to be charged or fired if necessary,” she said.
