A video that surfaced on social media of a 14-year-old in Cumberland, B.C. being forcibly restrained by a police officer only tells part of the story, according to Mounties.
On Thursday, a video was posted of an arrest of a boy that happened on Jan. 23 and appears to show the officer pinning the teen to the ground. Witnesses and bystanders are seen in the video asking the police officer to let the teen go. Witnesses said the incident started when the police officer, who was on bicycle, stopped the teen for riding on the sidewalk and not wearing a helmet.
The video does not show the entire interaction.
RCMP responded in a statement on Friday saying, “While the video shows a portion of the event, it does not show the officer conduct a legal stop for violations of the Motor Vehicle Act. Nor does it show the boy allegedly refuse to identify himself and become verbally abusive with the officer.”
The teen was arrested for obstruction when attempts were made by the lone officer to restrain the boy, and he allegedly continued to struggle.
“This is no different than a driver of a vehicle being pulled over for a traffic violation and refusing to provide their name or driver’s licence,” Detachment Commander Insp. Tim Walton said in a statement.
“While a few people in the video are very vocal, an independent witness contacted our detachment afterwards to comment on our officer’s patience throughout. These situations can be very challenging for an officer who is alone among a group of arguably volatile people.”
The boy has been released on a promise to appear and is expected in court in March.
An adult woman was also issued a notice to appear in court on a charge of obstruction, which will happen at a later date.
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