Quesnel, B.C. (Canadian Press) - A B.C. RCMP officer is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday, facing an assault charge following a confrontation with a suspect.
RCMP say Tony Adams, then 22, was arrested in the early hours of Dec. 16 at the scene of an accident near Quesnel, B.C.
Police say a suspect at the scene was interfering with emergency personnel trying to treat an injured passenger.
The man was placed under arrest for obstruction. Police say he then attacked an officer, “punching him without warning or provocation, and then jumping on him.”
A second officer deployed a Taser and the suspect was placed under arrest for assaulting a police officer and impaired driving.
“The officer received a non-permanent injury to one eye and was off duty for two weeks,” RCMP said in a statement issued Monday.
Police say another officer got into a verbal confrontation with the suspect back at the detachment.
“During the preparation for the breath testing, there was a verbal exchange…,” RCMP said.
The suspect was allegedly punched in the face.
Corp. Steven Chin has been suspended with pay since December and is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday.
The RCMP professional standards unit also conducted a code of conduct investigation. The results of that investigation have been forwarded to the force’s commanding officer in the province for formal discipline.
Adams’s trial for assaulting a police officer and impaired driving is scheduled for Nov. 19.
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1 RCMP Watch // Jul 9, 2008 at 21:56
Quesnel Mountie Faces Assault Charge
Quesnel, B.C. (250 News) - An RCMP officer stationed in Quesnel has been charged with assault and has been suspended with pay.
The charge comes as a result of a statutory investigation by the “E” Division Professional Standards Unit.
Corporal Steven Chin faces a single count of assault, the charge stems from an incident which occured in the Quesnel Detachment Cell block on December 16, 2007.
On December 16, 2007 at approximately 2:50 AM, members of the Quesnel RCMP had responded to a reported injury motor vehicle incident on Dragon Lake Hill, Highway 97 in Quesnel. This was a single vehicle incident. The driver of the vehicle, Tony Adams (then Age 22), was apparently interfering with emergency personnel at the scene who were trying to treat an injured passenger. An investigator arrested Adams for obstruction and was removing him from the immediate scene. Adams is alleged to have attacked the investigator, punching him without warning or provocation, and then jumping on him.
A second officer at the scene deployed a taser in the touch stun mode once on Adams who then stopped resisting and was arrested for assaulting a police officer. The officer received a non-permanent injury to one eye and was off duty for two weeks.
Adams was taken to the Quesnel detachment for processing for impaired driving and the assault charge.
Corporal Chin was called in from off duty as the Datamaster technician. During the preparation for the breath testing, there was a verbal exchange between Corporal Chin and Adams during which Corporal Chin is alleged to have struck Adams once in the face with a closed fist. The blow resulted in superficial injuries to ADAMS. The Detachment management was informed of the incident and an internal investigation was immediately ordered.
Tony Adams was charged with Impaired Driving and Assaulting a Peace Officer. His trial date is set for November 19. 2008.
On December 21, 2007, Corporal Chin was placed on, and remains on suspension with pay. He appears in Quesnel Provincial Court for a first appearance tomorrow at 9:30 AM.
A parallel Code of Conduct investigation was also conducted by the “E” Division Professional Standards Unit. That investigation has been referred to the “E” Division Commanding Officer for Formal Discipline.
This investigation involved a number of police witnesses, all of whom cooperated fully with the investigation. The RCMP will continue to cooperate as this matter proceeds through the courts.
2 RCMP Watch // Jul 14, 2008 at 20:51
Mountie charged with assault began career in Prince George
Prince George Citizen - Sunday, 13 July 2008
The Mountie charged with an on-duty physical assault is a former Prince George RCMP member.
Cpl. Steven Chin began his RCMP career here in 1993 and was stationed in Prince George until his transfer to Fort St. James in 2001 then to Quesnel in 2005.
Chin is now before both the courts and an RCMP internal investigation after an altercation at the Quesnel RCMP detachment on December 16, 2007. It reached court for the first time last week.
It is alleged that Chin punched a suspect who was not physically resisting him while they were together in the detention area of the building. Quesnel RCMP spokesman Sgt. Gary Clark-Marlow explained the events leading up to the contentious moment, starting at about 2:50 a.m. that winter day on Dragon Lake Hill where police were called to a serious motor vehicle incident involving a single car.
The suspected driver, Tony Adams, then age 22, was apparently interfering with emergency personnel at the scene who were trying to treat an injured passenger. Adams is said to have attacked a police member who acted to intervene. Clark-Marlow said Adams needed to be Tasered by another Mountie to break up the fight with the first police member. Adams was then taken to the Quesnel detachment on suspicion of impaired driving and resisting a peace officer.
“During the preparation for the breath testing, there was a verbal exchange between Cpl. Chin and Adams during which Cpl. Chin is alleged to have struck Adams once in the face with a closed fist,” Clark-Marlow said. “The blow resulted in superficial injuries to Adams.”
As a result of that night, Adams was charged with Impaired Driving and Assaulting a Peace Officer. His trial date is set for Nov. 19, 2008.
Cpl. Chin was placed on suspension with pay. In addition to the court action, Chin awaits the results of the internal RCMP formal disciplinary process.
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