An agreement was reached on a human rights complaint filed by an innocent native man and his granddaughter after they were falsely accused of fraud and then handcuffed in front of a bank branch in Vancouver in December 2019.
To mark the agreement that concludes the grievance process with the Canadian Human Rights Commission, Maxwell Johnson and members of his Heiltsuk Nation drummed and sang traditional songs near the intersection of Dunsmuir Street and Burrard Street, outside the Bank of Montreal’s main branch. in downtown Vancouver.
The healing ceremony took place at the exact spot where Vancouver police handcuffed Johnson and his granddaughter after bank officials called to report that they suspected the couple was using fraudulent or altered first nation status cards.
“It was really, very difficult. Seeing your 12-year-old granddaughter in handcuffs right in front of you and seeing her crying broke my heart, you know? Johnson said in an interview with CTV News on Thursday. “It really, really broke my heart.”
Johnson added that the experience still affects the 14-year-old girl, who is anxious every time she sees police officers in uniform.
The couple was at the bank on the day of the incident so Johnson could help his granddaughter open an account.
The agreement includes an undisclosed amount of financial compensation from Johnson and his granddaughter’s BMO, as well as a private apology ceremony to be held with representatives of the bank in the couple’s home community in Bella Bella.
The BMO also agreed to update its internal policies and procedures regarding the use of status cards as identification, to set up a company-wide training course for all employees and managers to learn about indigenous culture, and to set up an advisory board. of the indigenous population.
Johnson, an artist, has also created an original work of art that will hang prominently in the lobby of the BMO branch where the incident took place.
“I had to do this for myself to let everyone know that I was continuing from this,” he said. “And to show the world that we are working together to correct the mistakes made against us.
According to Heiltsuk Nation, the bank has also agreed to hang copies of the artwork in a number of other BC branches and to put up signs in those branches indicating which traditional territories of the first nation or nations are located.
“Two and a half years of negotiations have been difficult. It was difficult for all of us. “I’m happy with where we are right now,” Johnson said. “We’re just happy to have some ending.”
The BMO did not provide anyone for an interview to discuss the agreement.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement with Mr Johnson and his granddaughter,” the BMO said in a statement. “This was an important step for the BMO towards reconciliation, and we hope that the Johnson family will achieve the decision and completion they deserve.
Johnson said he closed his BMO accounts on Thursday as part of the resumption process.
Following the incident, the Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner ordered an investigation into the actions of those responsible, and Victoria Del Manak, the police chief, found that no discipline was needed. In investigations involving police officers, officers from other jurisdictions are sometimes called in to avoid an investigation by the local department.
Last July, however, the commissioner decided to seek a second opinion after judging that Manak’s findings may be incorrect. At that point, retired Judge Brian Neal was appointed to review the incident and all possible disciplinary proceedings.
Last month, Neil found that police officers were “oppressing” Johnson and his granddaughter.
“I found that the actions of the officers in arresting and handcuffing the parties were taken without reasonable and probable grounds,” Neil said in a statement shared by the Heiltsuk Nation in early April.
“I found that no sensible police officer in the place of the two officers could support such actions based only on suspicion.
The First Nation and Johnson have invited police officers Canon Wong and Mitchell Tong, the officers involved, to Bella Bella if they want to apologize and attend a traditional healing ceremony.
On Thursday, Johnson said none of the officers responded to the call.
A separate complaint against the VPD has yet to be resolved by the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal.
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