Post by MeM on Jan 3, 2006 12:55:40 GMT -5
January 28, 2005 - VANCOUVER – A Vancouver man has won an out-of-court settlement from the RCMP after an incident in which he says he was illegally searched.
Under Canadian law, that kind of search is illegal.
What upset the Laing even more is that some the officers he tangled with were actually American police officers.
Last spring, Laing was driving on a highway near Hope. He turned a corner and a man in an orange traffic vest in the middle of the road motioned him to pull over. In a heavy Texas accent, the man asked for Laing's identification.
Laing asked if the man was an American. The man answered that he was, and that he was performing a B.C. road check.
"I said, are you a police officer? Who are you to be detaining me?" The man was a Texas state trooper. The RCMP brought the Texans up to help them learn how to identify drug traffickers.
Laing refused to let the officers search his car. He knew that under Canadian law, police officers don't have the right to preform that kind of search. Laing is a Vancouver cop.
Less than a minute after Laing drove away, another Texas trooper – paired with an RCMP officer – pulled him over. This time Laing was told he was under the influence of marijuana. Laing's lawyer, Marilyn Sandford, says it was all preposterous.
Laing agreed to the search, but was told he couldn't take his son from the vehicle. He was horrified as he watched the Mountie search his two-year-old. The police found no drugs, and despite saying he was impaired just moments earlier, let him go.
RCMP spokesperson Const. John Ward says the Texas troopers profiling program provides great help to the Mounties.
"The Americans do a lot of this and have been doing it for quite some time. So there's a lot of opportunity on both sides of the border to become closer."
Laing and his lawyer disagree. They say that when it comes to narcotics, American attitudes and Canadian laws are quite different.
"We have different freedoms than they have," Laing says. "You don't want to mesh too much. You don't want your police meshing to the point where we start taking on other police jurisidiction's policies."
The RCMP settled with Laing out of court when he threatened to sue for unlawful detention. But the Mounties defend the search, saying Laing was suspicious because his eyelashes were fluttering and his eyes were flashing.
Murray Mollard of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association says police shouldn't be depending on clues like that. He says that it's not a scientifically reliable method.
The RCMP also says Laing was evasive when asked about his job. Laing says he didn't want to tell them he's a Vancouver cop.
"To me it's irrelevant," he says. "I'm a father with his son going to look at property. I'm not in the course of duty – I don't deserve privileges of any type."
Mollard says Laing's case presents a series of concerns – from using unreliable profiling techniques to a wrongful vehicle search, not to mention using an American police officer to pull over Canadians.
He says his association will be writing the RCMP to complain about the profiling techniques and remind them of the rights Canadians have under the law.
Under Canadian law, that kind of search is illegal.
What upset the Laing even more is that some the officers he tangled with were actually American police officers.
Last spring, Laing was driving on a highway near Hope. He turned a corner and a man in an orange traffic vest in the middle of the road motioned him to pull over. In a heavy Texas accent, the man asked for Laing's identification.
Laing asked if the man was an American. The man answered that he was, and that he was performing a B.C. road check.
"I said, are you a police officer? Who are you to be detaining me?" The man was a Texas state trooper. The RCMP brought the Texans up to help them learn how to identify drug traffickers.
Laing refused to let the officers search his car. He knew that under Canadian law, police officers don't have the right to preform that kind of search. Laing is a Vancouver cop.
Less than a minute after Laing drove away, another Texas trooper – paired with an RCMP officer – pulled him over. This time Laing was told he was under the influence of marijuana. Laing's lawyer, Marilyn Sandford, says it was all preposterous.
Laing agreed to the search, but was told he couldn't take his son from the vehicle. He was horrified as he watched the Mountie search his two-year-old. The police found no drugs, and despite saying he was impaired just moments earlier, let him go.
RCMP spokesperson Const. John Ward says the Texas troopers profiling program provides great help to the Mounties.
"The Americans do a lot of this and have been doing it for quite some time. So there's a lot of opportunity on both sides of the border to become closer."
Laing and his lawyer disagree. They say that when it comes to narcotics, American attitudes and Canadian laws are quite different.
"We have different freedoms than they have," Laing says. "You don't want to mesh too much. You don't want your police meshing to the point where we start taking on other police jurisidiction's policies."
The RCMP settled with Laing out of court when he threatened to sue for unlawful detention. But the Mounties defend the search, saying Laing was suspicious because his eyelashes were fluttering and his eyes were flashing.
Murray Mollard of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association says police shouldn't be depending on clues like that. He says that it's not a scientifically reliable method.
The RCMP also says Laing was evasive when asked about his job. Laing says he didn't want to tell them he's a Vancouver cop.
"To me it's irrelevant," he says. "I'm a father with his son going to look at property. I'm not in the course of duty – I don't deserve privileges of any type."
Mollard says Laing's case presents a series of concerns – from using unreliable profiling techniques to a wrongful vehicle search, not to mention using an American police officer to pull over Canadians.
He says his association will be writing the RCMP to complain about the profiling techniques and remind them of the rights Canadians have under the law.
