By paNOW

Judge rules RCMP arrest violated nurse’s rights

Jun 13, 2017 | 6:00 PM

Officers from the Big River RCMP detachment violated a nurse’s Charter rights during and after her arrest, a Provincial Court judge ruled yesterday.

Prince Albert nurse Lorraine Dodds, 54, was arrested by RCMP at a Big River hotel Oct. 29, 2016 outside a Halloween party. According to Dodds’ lawyer Dale Blenner-Hassett, RCMP officers arrived to deal with a separate issue. One officer saw Dodds stumble on the sidewalk outside and told her not to go back into the bar. When she tried to go inside, the officer arrested her for public intoxication and causing a disturbance.

Blenner-Hassett told paNOW the officers arrested Dodds without grounds, simply because her disobedience annoyed them. While Dodds was certainly intoxicated, he said the officers had a legal obligation to check with his client to see if she could be left in the care of a friend or family member before placing her under arrest. Dodds was also not causing a disturbance according to the letter of the law, he said.

“The judge agreed with us in our Charter application that there was simply no grounds on either count to arrest her,” Blenner-Hassett said. “When police use their authority to arrest somebody, they’ve got to have grounds.”

After Dodds was taken into custody at the Big River RCMP detachment, Blenner-Hassett said the police violated her Charter rights further by denying her the opportunity to speak with a lawyer.

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Dodds yelled, swore and struggled with the three male officers, Blenner-Hassett said. They pressed her against the concrete floor and handcuffed her before placing her into a cell. Dodds specifically requested to speak to a lawyer, he said, but was left in her cell for about 12 hours to “calm down” before she was released. Dodds was also charged with two counts of assaulting a peace officer following the struggle.

“She says ‘I want to see my effing lawyer’ and they basically say ‘until you calm down you’re not talking to anybody,’” Blenner-Hassett said.

After hearing testimony from all three officers involved in Dodds’ arrest, Prince Albert Provincial Court Judge Earl Kalenith ruled against the RCMP yesterday, finding the arrest violated Dodds’ Charter rights. The charges of assaulting a peace officer were dismissed because they occurred after an unlawful arrest, and the charges of public intoxication and causing a disturbance were never formally laid.

Although she will not suffer any legal penalty, according to her lawyer Dodds is far from satisfied.

Blenner-Hassett said his client has not received an apology from the RCMP, and noted during their testimony the three officers involved insisted they followed standard protocol and did nothing wrong. Dodds is still deciding what steps she will take, if any, Blenner-Hassett said, but she has not ruled out a formal complaint or even a civil lawsuit.

Aside from several bruises and sprains incurred during her struggle in the cell, Blenner-Hassett said Dodds suffered “extensive emotional trauma” from her 12-hour ordeal in police custody. She has lost wages while fighting the charges, he said, and incurred significant legal costs as well.

A spokesperson for the RCMP said the national police force does not comment on court decisions, and could not say if any disciplinary measures will be taken against the officers involved. The Crown lawyer who prosecuted the case could not be reached for comment.

Taylor.macpherson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @TMacPhersonNews