SIU investigating report of injury during police ‘interaction’ with protesters outside police station Friday
Ontario's Special Investigations Unit (SIU) has confirmed it is investigating a serious injury" reportedly sustained by a 24-year-old Hamilton protester during an arrest Friday.
The SIU says it is not looking at any alleged injuries suffered by protesters during arrests at J.C. Beemer Park last Wednesday.
In a Tuesday release, the SIU said the woman reportedly sustained the serious injury during the course of her arrest" at a demonstration outside Hamilton Police Service's central station on Friday.
Officers arrested three people outside the station that day: a 24-year-old woman who was charged with obstructing police, a 20-year-old man who was charged with assaulting police and obstructing police, and a 22-year-old person who was charged with assaulting a peace officer.
The charges for the 24-year-old and 20-year-old were in connection with a protest by affordable housing advocates at a J.C. Beemer Park tent encampment Wednesday. A total of five people have now been arrested in connection with that protest.
Police have said protesters obstructed officers when they breached a perimeter blocking off the encampment, which was largely destroyed by an explosive fire that morning. The city was also evicting homeless residents in the area. Protesters have said they were trying to support those being evicted.
The protesters have criticized police for their use of force at J.C. Beemer.
At a press conference Monday, one person said police punched them in the face, another said they suffered a concussion, and another said they had a sprained wrist. A photo by Spectator photographer Cathie Coward showing a protester under the knee of a police officer Wednesday went viral online over the weekend. Police called it a shoulder pin" but the woman in the photograph, Rowa Mohamed, said the officer's knee was on her neck and she couldn't breathe.
Hamilton police said they reported injury allegations to the SIU. Now that the SIU is investigating, police say they can no longer speak to the matter.
The SIU is an arm's-length agency that investigates reports police-related incidents involving death, serious injury or allegations of sexual assault.
The Friday demonstration outside the police station was held to demand the release of one of the people arrested earlier that day. When she was released, protesters remained. A video of the scene shows police officers tackling three people to the ground.
During the demonstration, there were interactions between protesters and officers," reads the SIU statement.
Katrina Clarke is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach her via email: katrinaclarke@thespec.com