Vancouver Police Board settles over handcuffing of Indigenous man, granddaughter

The Vancouver Police Board agrees to work on anti-Indigenous racism and attend an apology ceremony in Bella Bella, after an Indigenous man and his granddaughter were handcuffed outside of a downtown bank. Crystal Laderas reports.

By The Canadian Press

An Indigenous man and his granddaughter have reached an agreement with the Vancouver Police Board to settle a human rights complaint stemming from their handcuffing after they tried to open a bank account in 2019.

A statement from the Heiltsuk Nation says the “unique and impactful” settlement involves an apology for discrimination, undisclosed damages to Maxwell Johnson’s family, and a $100,000 payment to fund the nation’s restorative justice department.

Related Articles:

It says the police board will hold an apology ceremony at the Heiltsuk’s big house in Bella Bella on B.C.’s central coast next month, and develop a plan over two years to improve police training on anti-Indigenous racism, “cultural humility” and competency.

The statement says the police board will also hire an anti-Indigenous-racism officer to review complaints.

Johnson and his minor granddaughter were detained and handcuffed outside a Bank of Montreal branch in Vancouver after they tried to open an account for the girl in December 2019.

Police had been called because a bank employee suspected they were using a fake Indigenous status card as identification.

Johnson announced in May that they had reached an agreement with the bank that included an undisclosed payment from BMO, a private apology and a pledge to update the bank’s policies on how status cards are handled.

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today