On June 16, 2020, videos were brought to my attention through stories from media outlets videos of an aggressive arrest of an elderly Black couple at the Ajax Pickering Hospital on October 30, 2018. After watching the videos I reached out to the Durham Region Police Services Board to express my grave concerns over the nature of the incident. On behalf of the community, I have asked for a full accounting of the use of force in this incident.

Please find the letter attached. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact my Constituency Office at [email protected].

June 16, 2020

Durham Regional Police Services Board
Police Headquarters
605 Rossland Road East
Whitby, ON LJN OB8

Attn: Durham Regional Police Services Board

This letter is intended to express my concerns surrounding an incident on the evening of October 30, 2018. The incident took place at the Lakeridge Health Ajax Pickering Hospital, and was caught on video by a bystander and on security camera footage. It was brought to my attention through media outlets.

The videos show an elderly Black couple apprehended at the Ajax Pickering Hospital by Durham Regional Police Service (DRPS) Officers. As a community, we appreciate the work of our police officers who put their lives at risk in the line of duty. We understand that officers do face high pressure scenarios and can also be tasked with de-escalating high-risk situations. However, these videos show an aggressive arrest of an elderly couple as they leave the hospital, and that is very alarming.

We appreciate that a preliminary independent investigation was conducted. However, we again ask the Durham Regional Police Services (DRPS) Board for further clarity on this matter, adding to the request from last week for further clarification on the arrest of a 16-year-old in May 2019.

The DRPS Board functions as the civilian governing body of the police service, and as such we ask the Board to provide the community with a full accounting of why a use of force was deemed acceptable in this instance. Thank you for your consideration on this sensitive matter.

Sincerely,

The Honourable Mark Holland, Member of Parliament for Ajax, P.C.