Officers don’t have to be nice, just lawful when arresting, Crown decides

VICTORIA – British Columbia’s criminal justice branch says police officers don’t have to be perfect, nor do they have to be nice when arresting people who may become abusive.

The branch made the comment after deciding that two police officers who arrested a woman in Port Alberni after an altercation won’t face charges, even though the woman’s knee was broken in the melee.

The branch says the Crown carefully reviewed a report on the incident from the police watchdog and concluded it’s unlikely the officers would be convicted because it’s not clear the officers acted outside the bounds of a lawful use of force.

The woman involved has been charged with two counts of assaulting a peace officer and one of obstructing police.

Police were called to a government office in Port Alberni after a complaint of someone causing a disturbance on the morning of Feb. 15.

The case was handed over to the Independent Investigations Office, but the branch says it won’t release more details of the actual incident because the charges against the woman are now before the courts.