Do you wish to continue? Get a quick overview of all the merchants in your area with our handy comparison table. The easy-to-navigate scrolling feature lets you compare merchants at a glance and bookmark your favourites, helping you to make better, faster choices. You could update your browser right here: WATCH ABOVE: Police in Montreal are facing criticism after a video showing a confrontation between an officer and a man in a wheelchair. Witnesses say the man was just trying to cross the street. Amanda Jelowicki went to the officer looking for answers. A video showing Montreal police allegedly harassing a man in a wheelchair as he crossed the street is making the rounds of social media.The video was posted on Facebook by user Kate Albisi, who explained she and a colleague were out for a coffee break around 11:30 a.m. when they noticed the man, who appeared to be in his 50s, attempt to cross the street at the corner of McGill College and Sherbrooke Street.WATCH: Montreal police officer allegedly harasses man in wheelchair trying to cross street
READ MORE: Montreal disability rights advocates roll out campaign for wheelchair accessible terraces“As he neared the middle of the road, the light changed, forcing him to either continue crossing or go back,” she explained. A Montreal police officer, whom Albisi identifies as “Officer L’Heureux” reportedly confronted him for being in the middle of the intersection.“[He] began (aggressively) pushing him,” she wrote.“The man asked him to stop, but L’Heureux kept pushing him. The man swore at L’Heureux and again asked him to stop pushing him.”Global News spoke to Officer L’Heureux, but he refused to elaborate on what happened.He simply confirmed he was working on McGill College Wednesday and had given out several tickets.“L’Heureux’s colleague stepped in and pushed the man’s chair onto the sidewalk,” Albisi elaborated.“Once on the sidewalk, L’Heureux said to the man in the wheelchair: “You think you can do whatever you want just because you’re in a chair?
I’m going to give you a f—ing ticket. You asked for it.”The man reportedly did not have a piece of ID on him, prompting the officer to search the man’s bag “without permission and removed a prescription medication bottle to get his name.”WATCH: Global News’ Amanda Jelowicki speaks to the Montreal police officer accused of allegedly harassing a man in a wheelchair for attempting to cross the road. Albisi continued to write that the officer then turned to her and her colleague to ask if they had a problem.“We responded that we had a problem with the way they were dealing with the man in the wheelchair,” she wrote.“As both officers were engaged in dealing with the man in the wheelchair, no one was directing traffic. We asked if we could cross the street as it had become chaos.”“The officers told us ‘no, that it was a red light and we would get a ticket.’ When we pointed out that there were many people crossing the street on the red light, they told us that those people wouldn’t get a ticket, but that we would.”
In the video, recorded by a passerby and posted to Facebook, one of the officers is heard saying, "I'm going to give you a f--king ticket. You asked for it." The same officer is also heard asking repeatedly, "What is your name?" It's unclear from the video whether the man responds to the question. Another officer is seen going through the contents of the man's bag, which had been slung over the back of his wheelchair. Katherine-Marie Albisi, who recorded the video, witnessed the incident unfolding Wednesday morning while on a coffee break from work, at the corner of McGill College and Sherbrooke Street in downtown Montreal. She told CBC News the altercation began when the man tried to cross the street in a difficult-to-navigate construction zone. When the man neared the middle of the road, the light turned red, she said. "He continued, because I guess he just didn't know what do." "At that point, the cop directing traffic started yelling and saying, 'Just because you're in a wheelchair, it doesn't mean you can do whatever you want,'" according to Albisi.
'It just kind of escalated' Albisi said the officer ended up pushing the man in the wheelchair, and the man responded telling him not to touch him. That's when another police officer stepped in and pushed the wheelchair onto the sidewalk, she said. The man in the wheelchair pushed back. "It just kind of escalated," Albisi said. Katherine-Marie Albisi filmed the incident on her smartphone. When the man said that he didn't have any identification on him, police searched the man's backpack and removed a prescription medication bottle to get his name, Albisi said. "It was horrible," she said. "They never asked him to open his bag." Albisi said the man ended up with three tickets, although she doesn't know what for. She witnessed the incident along with her work colleague Margaret Levey. Levey told CBC News she called the police afterward to report the incident. She plans to file a formal complaint with the police ethics commission.
Police respond to video Cmdr. Danik Guerrero, who is in charge of Montreal police station 20, confirmed Thursday afternoon that he had seen the video and spoken with the officer involved. He said the video needs to be put into context — namely, that the incident happened at a wide intersection with heavy vehicle and pedestrian traffic as well as construction. Guerrero said the officer saw the man trying to cross the street and ordered him to stay on the median for his safety. The man proceeded anyway, despite oncoming traffic, and the officer pushed him and his wheelchair to the sidewalk, Guerrero said, adding that the video captures what happened next. Regarding the officer swearing at the man, Guerrero told CBC News that the language "was not appropriate." "I personally met with him and told him that, for us, this is language that I don't approve of and the Montreal police service does not approve of," Guerrero said. Otherwise, based on the information he received from the officer, Guerrero said he was only acting to ensure the man's safety.
He said any possible disciplinary action would be confidential. Body cameras being tested The incident comes as Montreal police test out body cameras on some officers as part of a pilot project. Some Montreal police officers are equipped with body cameras like this one. (Submitted by Montreal police) The goal is to ensure the transparency of police interventions and build trust between citizens and police. Montreal police increase use of body cameras Police body cams, accountability and injustice Yves Francoeur, president of the Montreal Police Brotherhood, came out in support of the idea, noting the cameras may add context to what citizens post online. "What you're going to see on YouTube is from the moment of the arrest, but we never have what happened before," Francoeur said recently. Stay Connected with CBC News Severe weather warnings or watches in effect for: Latest Montreal News Headlines PQ renews efforts to woo minority voters: Can it pay off by 2018?
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