Pubdate: Thu, 23 May 2013
Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
Copyright: 2013 The Ottawa Citizen
Contact: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/letters.html
Website: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326
Author: Andrew Seymour
Page: 31

DRUG DEALER'S RIGHTS 'NOT TAKEN SERIOUSLY'

A defence lawyer said she plans to seek a reduced sentence for a
convicted drug dealer after a judge concluded that an Ottawa police
officer repeatedly violated the man's rights, including intentionally
causing him pain by standing on his ankles in the cellblock.

Ontario Superior Court Justice Timothy Ray found that while Const.
Paul Greenwood "might have gained satisfaction" from his "purely
gratuitous act," the officer also breached Phillip McGuffie's rights
to be free from the intentional infliction of pain while in custody by
"needlessly" putting his full weight on the 21-year-old's ankles by
standing on them with both of his feet for over a minute.

Other rights breaches by Greenwood included improperly searching
McGuffie shortly after his arrest, detaining him in handcuffs for an
unreasonably long time before taking him to the police station and not
promptly advising him of his right to call a lawyer, Ray found.

Ray also criticized Ottawa police for a strip search of McGuffie that
was conducted in a room with an open door and while another officer
stood watch in the doorway on Dec. 18, 2011.

"There was simply no acceptable excuse advanced for what occurred. Mr.
McGuffie's rights were not taken seriously," Ray said. "The detention
and search of an individual is so intrusive under our law, that there
must be scrupulous compliance with the rights of an individual. The
law requires it. There was not."

In the cellblock video, Greenwood can be seen standing on McGuffie's
ankles, first with one foot, and later with both feet, as the prisoner
was pinned to the floor by other officers. At one point, Greenwood
appears to use the wall to balance himself. Greenwood said he stood on
McGuffie's ankles to stop him from kicking.

An unco-operative McGuffie was taken to the floor after he tried to
turn around as a special constable attempted to remove his handcuffs,
which appeared to have become tangled with his wristwatch. He twisted
and turned on the floor as the officers attempted to remove them and
complete their search.

"You don't have to step on my ankles," McGuffie shouts at one point in
the video. "I just don't want my legs to break."

McGuffie pleaded with the officer to get off his legs and screamed in
pain during what Ray said was an otherwise "textbook" detention and
search by the other officers present.

Despite the "serious" rights breaches, Ray found McGuffie guilty of
possessing drugs for the purpose of trafficking after police searches
turned up 118.5 grams of powdered cocaine and 30 grams of crack cocaine.

Some of the drugs had been hidden between his buttocks, while more
were sewn into the waist band of his boxer shorts.

McGuffie was in the cellblock after Greenwood found a sandwich bag of
cocaine in his shirt pocket following McGuffie's initial arrest in
connection with a gun call at an Elgin Street bar. McGuffie, who gave
a false name when he was arrested, first claimed it was baking soda
and then said it was for personal use.

Ray acquitted McGuffie of gun charges after finding there was no
evidence he ever possessed the handgun, which was found near the
corner of Elgin and Frank streets. Witnesses described seeing another
man with the gun in the bar.

McGuffie's lawyer, Natasha Calvinho, had asked the judge to toss out
the drug evidence, arguing that not excluding it would bring the
administration of justice into disrepute.

Ray disagreed. Drugs like cocaine and crack are a "serious blight" at
the root of a "great deal" of crime in our community, the judge said.

"I must underscore that my decision to not exclude these drugs should
in no way be taken to excuse the infringing conduct in this case,"
added Ray, who earlier concluded that Greenwood's action wasn't
typical of a systemic problem at the Ottawa police.

Calvinho said Wednesday she plans to seek a "significantly reduced"
sentence for McGuffie at his sentencing hearing Monday. McGuffie has
already been in jail for 13 months.

"The breaches in this particular case are egregious," Calvinho said.
"That should be taken into consideration when determining what the
appropriate sentence is, despite the quantity of drugs.

"The state needs to be held accountable for their actions."

The Crown argued Greenwood may have exercised "poor judgment," but
there were no breaches of McGuffie's rights. Attempts to reach
Greenwood were unsuccessful Wednesday.
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