Officers who handcuffed Indigenous man, granddaughter might not attend apology ceremony, nation says

The possibility that the Vancouver police officers who handcuffed and detained an Indigenous man and his granddaughter when they tried to open a bank account won't be attending an apology ceremony is being described as "extremely hurtful."

The possibility that the Vancouver police officers who handcuffed and detained an Indigenous man and his granddaughter when they tried to open a bank account won't be attending an apology ceremony is being described as "extremely hurtful."

The apology ceremony is one component of what was described as a "ground-breaking" settlement of Maxwell Johnson and his granddaughter Torianne’s 2019 human rights complaint. The Heiltsuk First Nation will be hosting the Vancouver Police Board whose members will formally apologize to Johnson and his family on their territory.

A statement issued Sunday by the nation says the names of the two constables are not on a passenger list of the delegation travelling to Bella Bella. Cultural protocol, a spokesperson explains, does not allow for others to stand in as representatives for the officers.

"Traditional Apology Ceremony cannot be carried out unless all of those who caused the harm are themselves present," the online statement says.

"The Heiltsuk Nation and Maxwell Johnson would view the constables’ potential non-attendance as a symptom of the larger systemic failure to acknowledge and take responsibility for systemic racism in policing."

The Vancouver Police Board has admitted the officers' conduct discriminated against Johnson and his granddaughter based on their Indigenous identities.

A review by a retired judge, ordered by B.C.'s Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner, found that Constables Canon Wong and Mitchel Tong committed misconduct after they were called to the downtown Vancouver Bank of Montreal branch. Each officer was found to have committed two counts of abuse of authority. First, by removing Johnson and Torianne from the bank "without reasonable cause" and "recklessly arresting" them. Second, by "recklessly using unnecessary force" by putting them both in handcuffs.