A victory today for a South Shore man who says he’s been repeatedly pulled over by police because of racial profiling.
Joel DeBellefeuille was at Longueuil Municipal Court contesting a ticket he got in St. Hubert in 2015 for not wearing a seat belt. He argues he was wearing a seat belt when he was pulled over, and that police were racially profiling him.
READ MORE: Racial profiling harmful and pervasive in Ontario: report
His case was delayed five times. Now, the prosecution has dropped the charges because the case was taking too long.
“The prosecutor informed the judge that he wanted to withdraw the charges due to the Jordan ruling,” DeBellefeuille told Global News outside the court room. “This is fantastic news.”
On October 23, 2015, DeBellefeuille was given a ticket for not wearing a seatbelt while driving his BMW. He said police made numerous mistakes on the ticket, including writing that he had been riding with a child passenger when he was alone. Since the incident, he traded in his BMW for a Mazda. He says he hasn’t been pulled over since.
READ MORE: Kirkland resident to file complaint against Montreal police; claims racial profiling
DeBellefeuille said the win on Monday would not stop him from going after the officers that pulled him over.
He says he’s been pulled over by police “about ten times,” because of racial profiling.
The Police Ethics Commission reprimanded officers who pulled him over back in 2009.