Man accuses Montreal police of racial profiling after repeatedly being stopped while driving

Over the last eight months, Nigel Berkley says he’s been stopped by police at least four times while driving his mother’s Dodge Caravan.

“I was just told the reason for my being stopped, intercepted is because it's registered to a woman,” he told CTV News.

Now, Berkley says it’s come to the point where he panics behind the wheel, wondering if he’ll be stopped again.

“It's a very, very uncomfortable feeling,” he says.

“From the time I see the police, even if it's going the opposite direction, it brings a fear.”

With the help of the Center for Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR), Berkley plans to file complaints with the police ethics commissioner and the human rights commission.

“We want to say that this is enough,” says CRARR Executive Director Fo Niemi. 

Niemi believes this is another case of racial profiling affecting Black drivers, but he also wants the courts to make police stops based on gender illegal.

But he also wants the courts to make police stops based on gender illegal.

“It hasn't been officially declared, or concluded by the courts, that it is a form of discrimination based on gender. That's what we hope to do with his case,” says Niemi.

Montreal police refused to comment on Berkley’s case but says in a statement that police officers can intercept a vehicle at any time if they notice an offence was committed.

Police go on to say that officers can also stop a vehicle and ask a driver to identify themselves, verify documents, check for sobriety, or the car's mechanical condition without cause.

But Berkley says that needs to stop.

“I'll be honest, there is no trust with me and the police. My son, he doesn't even want to hear anything about the police,” he says.

Niemi says that “more importantly, it’s not just about the stop but what may happen after the stop, because the situation can escalate.”

By bringing these complaints forward, Berkeley hopes he can get back to driving without fearing being pulled over.