A nursing student in Canada has sued the Royal Canadian Mounted Police after the RCMP officer allegedly abused her during a wellness check. Mona Wang, 20, filed a civil claim against Const. Lacy Browning, Canada's attorney general, BC's minister of public safety and the solicitor general, after the incident that occurred in January, some part of which was captured on surveillance footage.
A GlobalNews report says that the lawsuit stated that Wang was in mental distress on January 20, when she asked her boyfriend to call 911 for a wellness check. Const. Lacy Browning responded to this call, and entered Wang's home without identifying as police, and found Wang semi-conscious and unresponsive on the bathroom floor.
Officer Kicked Her Stomach
Then the RCMP officer stepped on Wang's arm and she kicked her stomach, according to the civil suit. Browning also called Wang a "stupid idiot" while telling her to "stop being dramatic." The RCMP handcuffed Wang and dragged her on her stomach from the bathroom floor, causing serious injuries, as the police dragged her to the elevator she allegedly punched Wang in her face.
The surveillance video confirmed that Wang was dragged along the building's floor. An officer is also seen pulling Wang's head up by her hair and stepping on Wang's face.
Wang was taken to the Kelowna General Hospital, only after she was taken to the custody, according to the lawsuit. Wang suffered bruises and eye injuries. Browning told medical professionals that Wang was high on meth. But these claims have not been proved in court.
Police's Civil Response
Browning's civil response submitted on June 15 said that Wang didn't suffer injuries due to the incident and such a force was necessary as Wang had a history of prior suicide attempts.
Allegedly, Wang held a box cutter knife at the time of Browning's arrival, claims the response. Wang had "already engaged in self-injurious behavior and appeared motivated to harm herself further." Amid such a situation, Browning had no backup and defended her actions, as it was well within the scope of her duties.
Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran called this disturbing and called for a review on how police respond to mental health-related de-escalation.
