Police watchdog cleared Kamloops officer in public intoxication arrest

BC’s police watchdog cleared an officer’s use of force following an arrest in Kamloops last year in which a man said they dislocated his shoulder. Police arrested the man for uttering threats and public intoxication in Kamloops on Feb. 17, 2023, according to a report from the Independent Investigations Office of BC. The office is a civilian agency responsible for investigating incidents when someone is injured or killed by police, and it looked into this case. The man who was arrested told police a little over a month after the arrest that an officer had dislocated his shoulder while he was in custody. Police dash camera footage showed the man appeared to be heavily intoxicated based on his slurred speech and movements. The officer under investigation arrested the man and brought him back to the RCMP station and held him in a cell. The man claimed the officer put a knee on his shoulder and chest during the arrest, and threw him in a cell. READ MORE: B.C. police watchdog clears West Kelowna officer in October portable toilet shooting https://infotel.ca/newsitem/bc-police-watchdog-clears-west-kelowna-officer-in-october-portable-toilet-shooting/it105245 Video from the police car showed the man kicking at the passenger divider during transport and cell block footage showed the man resisting officers as they led him to a cell. Officers had to drag him to the “drunk tank” by his arms since he was not cooperating. Once the man was released sober he refused to be taken to the hospital and told police he would get medical treatment on his own. A month after the arrest the man called and said his shoulder was dislocated and would need surgery, but he hadn’t gone to a doctor so there were no medical records of his injury. The man did go to a doctor in June 2023 but he argued with the doctor and police were called so he left. He said he was intoxicated but not drunk since he said he only had “a couple of beers.” The IIO cleared the officer in this case since there was no evidence their use of force was unnecessary and the arrested man didn’t have proof his injury happened during his time in custody. To contact a reporter for this story, email Jesse Tomas mailto:jtomas@infonews.ca  or call 250-488-3065 or email the editor mailto:news@infonews.ca . You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom mailto:tips@infonews.ca  and be entered to win a monthly prize draw. We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. SUBSCRIBE to our awesome newsletter here https://infotel.ca/newsletter .