VPD faces yet another bean bag gun lawsuit
VPD faces yet another bean bag gun lawsuit
Officers shot Jermaine Johnson with a bean bag gun in November as he was holding his hands up to surrender to arrest. Video of the incident made waves on Twitter at the time of the incident.
The Vancouver Police Department is facing yet another lawsuit over shooting people with beanbags.
The incident was caught on camera and posted online by the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users in November last year, just a few months following the death of Chris Amyotte, who VPD officers shot with bean bags after he was bear sprayed.
Jermaine Johnson’s lawsuit describes him as a labourer and barber, as well as a racialized minority, and says that on Nov. 24, 2022, “following pursuit by the Vancouver Police Department, the plaintiff raised his hands and submitted to arrest.”
As he did, an officer identified in the lawsuit as John Doe shot him with bean bags out of a shotgun.
“While the plaintiff was on the ground and suffering in obvious distress, with his hands raised in surrender, Vancouver Police Officer Jane Doe either intentionally or negligently released a police service dog on the plaintiff, causing the canine to repeatedly and savagely maul and bite the defenceless plaintiff,” Johnson’s lawsuit claims.
Video of the incident, posted the day of, corroborates much of this account. Johnson is seen with his hands up in the video, and as he turns to put his hands on a taxi next to him, a loud bang is heard, and he staggers. Another two shots are fired, and he falls to the ground.
The camera then moves, and Johnson is hidden behind a vehicle, but when it returns, an officer is seen tearing a dog off of Johnson.
At the time, the VPD justified the use of force on Twitter saying Johnson had a violent history and that he had allegedly threatened the driver of the nearby taxi in order to escape the police. They also noted that he challenged them to shoot him—a challenge they apparently took him up on. But while some bought into the point, others certainly didn’t.
“I'm sorry, so is ‘we don't like him’ a legal justification for using deadly force on someone with their hands up, then attacking them with a dog when they're already incapacitated? You have that power now, to determine guilt and dispense punishment for past offenses? Pls clarify,” wrote one Twitter user.
The VPD said at the time that police were arresting Johnson for an “unrelated crime.” However, Court Services Online shows no record of charges against Johnson since 2021.
The VPD declined to comment on the matter, as it’s still being actively investigated by the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner. Johnson’s lawyers didn’t respond to a request for comment on why, if Johnson was being arrested for a crime at the time of the incident, there appears to have been no charges stemming from this case.
The VPD was also recently sued by Amyotte’s family and was hit with a lawsuit in 2020 by a correctional officer who was shot three times by two officers with bean bags while he was a passenger in a taxi.
The VPD is subject to another lawsuit in recent weeks, this time by a landlord accused of breaking into his rental property.
William Li claims he was woken up on May 28, 2021 to banging on his front door. He opened the door to find five police officers outside with their guns drawn. He claims he was dragged outside, hit and taken to the ground. According to his lawsuit, an officer referred to as Jane Doe then kneed him in the back and put him in handcuffs, and a police dog allegedly almost bit him.
Jane Doe reportedly told Li he was being arrested for breaking into a Vancouver property. His lawsuit says the property was his, and “was rented out to various tenants in a shared accommodation rental arrangement.”
It’s not clear, if Li was at the property, why he was there or why police were called on him or by whom. Landlords are not allowed to enter suites unannounced unless there is an emergency or the tenant agrees to let them in.
“The plaintiff immediately informed the police defendants that the plaintiff was the owner and landlord of the property and that the police defendants had made a mistake. The police defendants ignored the plaintiff's communications,” the lawsuit says.
“The plaintiff was forced into the police car by the police defendants. The plaintiff was still wearing his pajamas, with an open front fly. The plaintiff was humiliated.”
The lawsuit alleges Li was “forced to undergo various body searches and physical examinations,” before being left in a cold room for several hours, and that he was ultimately let go without any charges.
“When the plaintiff was released, the plaintiff did not have a wallet, cell phone, or proper clothing. The plaintiff was still wearing the pajama with the open front fly,” the lawsuit claims. “The plaintiff had to cover himself with his hands and walk for more than 3 hours back home.”
According to BC Assessment, the property, described as a nine-bedroom, eight-bathroom house, was sold 32 days after the alleged incident.
Also, hey, I was on TV this week to talk about crime narratives in Vancouver. Specifically, I told Mo Amir of This is Vancolour on CHEK TV that crime is not, as some big monolith, rising in the city, let alone out of control. You can also find some great analysis from pollster Mario Canseco on public perceptions of crime and how they’re out of tune with reality and from lawyer Kyla Lee about the federal Liberal Party’s proposed bail reforms (it’s pandering and/or bullshit) in the episode. Watch here.