Actions of cop accused of G20 assault were ‘textbook,’ lawyer says

TORONTO – The lawyer for a Toronto police officer accused of assaulting a man at a G20 protest says his client’s actions, including hitting the man with a baton, were a “textbook example” of police training.

Adam Nobody, a 30-year-old stage hand, was tackled by police at a G20 demonstration at the Ontario legislature on June 26, 2010, and alleges that police used excessive force in arresting him.

Const. Babak Andalib-Goortani has pleaded not guilty to assault with a weapon.

It’s agreed that Nobody’s arrest was lawful, but the judge must decide if the force Andalib-Goortani used was lawful.

In his closing submissions today, Andalib-Goortani’s lawyer Harry Black is arguing that a frame-by-frame examination of videos of Nobody’s arrest shows that he was resisting and struggling with the officers trying to arrest him.

Black says the videos show Andalib-Goortani thrusting his baton at Nobody’s thigh area as he is resisting, then he stops and stands up once the other officers are able to put Nobody in handcuffs.