Case against Sikh dismissed as police fail to return turban
Monday, 18/07/2016
http://epaper.dailypostindia.com/Details.aspx?id=161212&boxid=63253&uid=&dat=2016-07-18
Ontario Court Justice Jill Copeland the breach of the defendant’s right to freedom of religion by police was a serious one.
Toronto: A Canadian court has dismissed a drunk driving charge against a Sikh man because police officers did not return his turban for over three hours after it accidentally fell off while he was being arrested.
Charges of impaired operation and excess blood alcohol against Sardul Singh were dismissed because Peel Regional Police officers did not return his turban after it fell while he was being placed in a cruiser in Southern Ontario. Ontario Court Justice Jill Copeland, in a decision released last month, wrote that the failure to return Singh’s turban while he was in custody constituted a Charter breach. Copeland ruled that the breach of the defendant’s right to freedom of religion by police was a serious one and that Singh’s breath sample evidence should be excluded because its admission into evidence would bring the administration of justice into disrepute.
Peel Police Chief Jennifer Evans, in a statement on Friday, was quoted as saying by The Canadian Press that she ordered a review of the decision and the officer’s actions after Singh was detained on December 10, 2014.
Evans said Peel Regional Police have had a directive in place since 2012 regarding the proper search and handling of religious items and a training bulletin has been issued internally to remind officers of this and other directives.