A Calgary man is levelling some serious allegations against the Calgary Police Service regarding injuries he allegedly sustained during a traffic stop on the evening of March 8.
Daniel Joyce said he was driving home through the intersection at 52 Street and Castleridge Boulevard NE when he saw flashing lights behind him. He said he pulled over on Castleridge Boulevard, heading west, near the bus stop.
“I put my car in neutral and pulled the handbrake and opened the window,” Joyce said. “He says to me, ‘get out of your car, right now.’ Like real loud. And I went, ‘how come?’ Next thing I know, the door flew open and he punched me.”
“Next thing I know, they’re pulling me out. I was on the ground, from what I can remember, and my foot was caught between the pedals. The car did rev up. I heard that. But my foot was caught on the pedal, of course.”
Joyce said he was repeatedly punched in the face and between his legs. He said his glasses were broken.
He said several police cars surrounded him as he was lying on the ground. He estimates the traffic stop lasted about 15 minutes before he was taken to the police station.
“A sergeant came in and started questioning me, showing me pictures, like pictures of these drug dealers and stuff like that.”
Joyce said police told him the photos were of people in the drug trade. He said an officer asked if he was sore and called for an ambulance. Joyce was rushed to the Peter Lougheed Hospital where he remained overnight.
Joyce said police initially told him he was facing three drug-related charges but once the ambulance arrived he was told there would be no charges.
Calgary EMS confirmed paramedics transferred a man from a police station to the hospital shortly before 11 p.m. on March 8.
“There’s no reason for police to get that physical with me. Like what am I, 120 pounds or something?”
Joyce said his car was searched while he was being questioned. The next day, he had to pay to retrieve it from the impound lot.
Joyce drives with an accessibility sign in his window because he suffers from a muscle spasm disorder called dystonia. He said he had the sign in his window on the evening of the arrest. He takes medication to control symptoms but said they’ve worsened since the arrest.
“I’ve been having problems sleeping at night… I’ve been up four of five times last night,” Joyce said.
“With my wrist, my hand gets sore. My ribs. I’ve been having mega problems with my ribs.”
The Calgary Police Service issued the following statement Tuesday:
“The Calgary Police Service treats any allegation against a member extremely seriously. There are often two sides to a story and that is why we ensure that allegations are investigated thoroughly prior to discussing specific details in the media. However, the version of events we currently have is very different from that being portrayed by this individual – hence the importance of a thorough investigation. One thing we can confirm is that this is not a case of mistaken identity, the individual was known to CPS and was arrested as part of an ongoing ALERT investigation. While we cannot give details on this specific case, the use of force used by members is generally dictated by the actions of the individual we are dealing with.”
Joyce acknowledged that he has a past criminal record, involving impaired driving and a conviction for mischief to property. In this case, he hasn’t been charged with anything.
CPS have set up a meeting with Joyce for Wednesday morning. Joyce said, at this point, he cannot afford a lawyer.
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