MEDICINE HAT, AB — The officer at the centre of a Police Act Hearing gave his testimony Friday morning.
The three day hearing was called after allegations of unlawful use of force were brought to the Medicine Hat Police Service.
The man who filed the initial complaint, Ron Eresman, hopes no one has to go through what he did and is hoping for justice.
“I’ve heard many people complaining about that this kind of stuff happens, nobody does anything about it,” Eresman said outside the police station, following the hearing. “I just thought it’s time somebody stood up to it and do something about it.”
Eresman didn’t like the way Constable Darren Holeha treated him on August 24th, 2015.
It started as a traffic stop for not wearing a seat belt and Eresman said it ended with Holeha using excessive force.
“He just pushed me in the back of the vehicle, just like you would throw a dog when you’re mad at him or whatever,” he said.
Eserman filed a complaint and provided numerous photos of the injuries he endured as evidence.
“I’m 68 years old, I have a lot of medical problems,” he said. “Why would somebody want to do something like that over a seat belt ticket?”
Friday marked the third and final day of the Police Act Hearing.
Holeha, a 12 year member with the service, said he asked Eresman for his driver’s license.
He said Eresman began calling him names and swore at him.
The situation grew tense as Eresman sat in his vehicle, holding onto the steering wheel.
Holeha testified saying he remembers Eresman made a fist with his right hand while saying “I should just punch you right in the face” before trying to shift the vehicle into reverse.
“I saw the vehicle was running,” he told the hearing.
“[It] appeared like he was trying to put it in reverse, he had his hand on the gear shift.”
When pressed, Holeha admitted that in hindsight, he could have used a different approach to de-escalate in the situation, which ultimately led to Eresman being taken into custody.
“I don’t hold a grudge against him,” Eresman said. “I don’t hold a grudge against anybody but I’m looking for justice and maybe the next person doesn’t have to go through what I had to go through with him.”
Inspector Brent Secondiak said complaints can come from fellow officers and members of the public.
“Complaints range anywhere from driving behaviours, so officers not driving appropriately, to behaviour issues,” Secondiak said. “Maybe they were rude or abrupt with members of the public. And it can be all the way up to criminal allegations to use of force allegations.”
In this case, the professional standards unit began an investigation into the matter and a hearing was called.
Secondiak said, in any hearing, the consequences can be serious.
“They can be quite extreme. They can be anywhere from a reprimand or a warning, all the way up to dismissal from the police service.”
“I’d like to see him lose his job because he wanted to give me a criminal record and I’ve been in this city since 1967. I’ve never had any problems,” Eresman said.
Lawyers will now prepare their closing arguments, which are expected to be presented next month.
