Driving while Black: Court rules lawyer was racially profiled by police
A Quebec judge has ruled a Black man was racially profiled by Montreal police (SPVM) officers during a downtown traffic stop.
On Jan. 28, 2021, at 6 p.m., lawyer Kwadwo Yeboah and his 15-year-old daughter were driving on René-Lévesque Boulevard in a white Mercedes registered to his wife's company.
He was stopped at an intersection when two officers spotted him and decided to follow him for a few blocks before turning on their flashing lights, pulling him over and asking for his papers.
According to court documents, the officers said they thought the licence might be fake but their patrol car wasn't equipped with a computer to do the necessary checks.
They called in for back-up and two more patrol cars arrived.
The judgement notes the officers asked Yeboah questions about where he was going and who the car belonged to -- questions the judge said were "not relevant."
Despite the fact that Yeboah's licence was valid, he was swiftly arrested for providing a false licence, handcuffed and put in the back of one of the patrol cars.
The officers also claimed they thought he was using a cellphone while driving and he was charged with contravening section 443.1 of the Quebec Highway Safety Code.
The judge concluded that the officers' behaviour during the intervention showed clear indications that Yeboah was being racially profiled.
In addition, the judgement shows that one of the officers was wearing a body camera that recorded the incident.
Though she shared the footage with colleagues via WhatsApp, that video, along with surveillance footage from a nearby hotel, was never recorded into evidence.
"The withholding of body camera footage is a serious denial of justice and an indicator of conscious racial profiling," the judgement concluded. "The withholding of surveillance footage from the hotel is a serious denial of justice and an indicator of conscious racial profiling."
CTV News reached out to Montreal police for comment, and the force acknowledged the court's decision.
"As in any other court case, there is a 30-day time limit to appeal a decision," the force stated. "We will take the time to analyze it and let the legal process take its course. We will not make any further comments at this time."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Shameful': Monument honouring fallen soldiers included names of living veterans
Veterans are asking for answers after discovering that two sculptures in Ontario honouring fallen soldiers include the names of many people who are very much alive.
Canada's air force took video of object shot down over Yukon, updated image released
The Canadian military has released more details and an updated image of the unidentified object shot down over Canada's Yukon territory in February 2023.
Invasive species could be hiding in your Christmas decor. Here's how to stop the spread
Make sure to look through your holiday decorations, as Christmas trees, wreaths, and other natural decor can have invasive insects, eggs, and plants that pose a threat to local ecosystems and the economy.
Northern Ontario man sentenced for killing his dog
WARNING: This article contains graphic details of animal abuse which may be upsetting to some readers. A 40-year-old northern Ontario man is avoiding prison after pleading guilty to killing his dog earlier this year.
80-year-old driver with expired licence accused of going nearly double the speed limit in eastern Ontario
Ontario Provincial Police say a man caught stunt driving on Highway 37 near Tweed, Ont. Thursday was 80 years old, and his licence was expired.
The mysterious, mathematical origins of the world's most unusually shaped national flag
It's a go-to question at bar trivia: what is the only national flag in the world that isn't rectangular or square shaped?
Which guns are now banned in Canada? Here's what you need to know
Canada is expanding its federal ban on firearms, adding 324 makes and models of guns to the prohibited weapons list, effective immediately.
Not just for your parents: Facebook's buy-and-sell platform drawing back millennials
The two-metre-tall anchor, believed to be from a century-old shipwreck, was salvaged by a fisherman in the 1980s. But last year, the 31-year-old Stapleton, who works as a navigation officer on a cargo ship, snapped it up on Facebook Marketplace.
Days after gunman killed UnitedHealthcare's CEO, police push to ID him and FBI offers reward
The gunman who killed the CEO of the largest U.S. health insurer likely left New York City on a bus soon after the brazen ambush that has shaken corporate America, police officials said. But he left something behind: a backpack that was discovered in Central Park.