Hamilton officer receives year-long demotion over 2022 gas station assault

A Hamilton police officer who pleaded guilty to the assault of an Indigenous man will be demoted but ultimately keep his job after an adjudicator disagreed with prosecutors’ claims he was not useful.

Former Ontario Provincial Police superintendent Greg Walton admitted Const. Brian Wren “tarnished the reputation” of Hamilton police with his actions in a May 2022 incident that led to a man being stomped on at a Mountain gas station.

However, Walton refused to believe the occurrence “nullified his usefulness” considering Wren’s “exemplary” record in a decade-long career.

“I am satisfied he has the ability to continue to serve his community and his employer in the same manner,” Walton said.

“I find the argument that he is a strong candidate for rehabilitation compelling, however, I do not accept that a loss of hours is appropriate.”

Wren’s demotion in rank from first-class constable to second-class is effective immediately and will last one year.

The penalty usually confines an officer to patrol or frontline functions, according to the Hamilton Police Association (HPA).

During that time, he’s expected to lose income of around $14,000 from his salary.

Wren was accused of stomping on Patrick Tomchuk’s head during an arrest tied to a stolen vehicle investigation at a Hamilton Mountain gas station on May 26, 2022.

A key piece of evidence in the matter was mobile phone footage from a bystander that showed Tomchuk pinned to the ground near a gas pump while surrounded by officers.

In the video, a man in plain clothes could be seen stomping on the side of the man’s head and face multiple times.

Wren pleaded guilty to the assault in a court of law last June.

He was given an 18-month suspended sentence and 200 hours of community service by a judge.

At the time, the vice-chief of the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples (CAP) told a courtroom that Wren’s charges were “a starting point” but “insufficient” to relieve the fears of Indigenous people who feel systems do not protect them.

“Until there is a deeper change in accountability and real authority given to Indigenous communities to protect themselves against abuses, we can only expect our worst fears to continue being confirmed,” the CAP’s Kimberly Beaudin said in June.

The interaction would spur on the appointment of Hamilton police’s first Indigenous liaison officer, Stacey Hill.

In his written decision, Walton said an apology in January coupled with an exceptional performance record for the service were key in handing down the punishment.

Wren was promoted to detective constable with the Break and Enter, Auto Theft and Robbery (BEAR) unit in 2017.

HPA president Jaimi Bannon says the union accepts the decision and subsequent penalty.

Since the incident, she insists Wren has taken the “necessary steps to improve himself personally and professionally.”

“He is truly remorseful and he’s apologized several times,” Bannon said.

“I think the community should be accepting of that and give him a chance to prove himself going forward.”