One of two young men arrested and released last week as police responded to a gun call on St. Paul Avenue said he remains shaken after being surrounded by officers pointing guns at him.
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“It’s weird to think about all those people who had to be in sync to not take my life,” said Brody L’Heureux, 19, in a phone interview.
L’Heureux was walking home from work when he paused under the bridge on St. Paul Avenue near Brant Avenue, taking shelter from a rainstorm.
He was listening to music in his headphones when he noticed three police cruisers passing and then stopping nearby.
“They came out with guns pointed at me. It was a little terrifying. I had no clue what was going on. I didn’t even jaywalk.”
L’Heureux was ordered to his knees and to put his hands in the air.
Three officers surrounded him and handcuffed him, but he heard one say he didn’t think L’Heureux was the suspect.
“Could I ask what this is about?” the handcuffed young man said meekly.
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“They were about to take the handcuffs off but, just then, a guy came around the corner and they took off toward him.”
A female officer jogged the still-cuffed L’Heureux to a cruiser, away from the unfolding drama, and, once the other man had also been cuffed and searched, both were released.
One officer apologized to the shaken L’Heureux and drove him home, after he requested a ride. A followed supervisor up to check on him over the weekend.
“I think they shouldn’t have come at me like that,” L’Heureux said. “I wasn’t a threat.”
But Brantford Police Service received a call at about 4:15 pm that day from a person who said they saw a man walking on Brant Avenue with a firearm, and they responded quickly.
“Reports of weapons are extremely serious and pose a significant risk to public safety as well as to responding officers,” said BPS spokesperson Robin Matthews-Osmond.
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“The intersection of Brant Avenue and St. Paul Avenue is a very busy area, particularly at that time of day with increased traffic.”
Matthews-Osmond said both men were arrested, checked for firearms and released but no firearm was located or charges laid.
She said the officers were ensuring the safety of the public and responded according to the many policies and procedures outlined by both Brantford Police and the Canadian Safety and Policing Act.
But the young man’s mother, Leanne L’Heureux, said the incident endangered her son.
“If he had made any wrong move, it could have turned out so badly. They were yelling at him.”
L’Heureux said she was especially annoyed because her son’s distinct appearance that day – in black pants with a backpack and cap – didn’t match the description given to the officers of a man in blue jeans with a white shirt.
She told her story on Facebook and received many responses from people who saw the incident and others, telling her launch a lawsuit against the police and the city.
L’Heureux said she’s filed a complaint to try and ensure such a situation doesn’t happen again.
@EXPSGamble
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