Calgary police officer found not guilty of assaulting a 'volatile and violent' Hells Angels member

Calgary police Const. Brant Derrick has been found not guilty of assaulting a "volatile and violent" Hells Angels member in 2008.

"I accept that the accused perceived himself to be in a dangerous situation at the time," said provincial court Judge Josh Hawkes, who delivered his decision Tuesday following a trial last month. 

Calgary Police Association president Les Kaminski was also charged in connection with the arrest. Kaminski's assault charge was dropped but he is set to go to trial accused of perjury.

Derrick smiled as he walked out of the courthouse.

"It's been a very long, highly public and very stressful road for my client and as you can appreciate this comes as a great relief to him," said Derrick's lawyer, Don MacLeod.

• Cop accused of assaulting Hells Angels member says he felt use of force necessary

In August 2008, Derrick was conducting a traffic stop after witnessing an illegal turn downtown.

Jason Arkinstall — who was wearing a Hells Angels T-shirt at the time — was a passenger in the vehicle and became angry, cursing at the officers and even threatening to kill them.

Although Arkinstall did show up at court during the trial, Hawkes noted he told prosecutor Jarrod Hone "he had no recollection of the events in question" and was not called as a witness.

That meant Hone had to rely on video evidence of the arrest that took place following the traffic stop.

The officers at the scene were aware Arkinstall was a Hells Angels member and court heard he resisted arrest.

Use of force questioned

​Derrick was involved in three use-of-force instances in the video that the prosecution argued were excessive.

First, a palm strike delivered to the back of Arkinstall's head was found by the judge to be a "necessary use of force to secure compliance."

Then, as Derrick brought Arkinstall to the back of the police van, the officer appeared to forcefully shove him inside.

Hawkes found it was reasonable to believe that Derrick had either an "honest and reasonable miscalculation as to the force required" or that Arkinstall began to move forward on his own.

Finally, Derrick was accused of closing the inner cage doors of the van on the suspect's legs and or feet. But Hawkes found the video was inconclusive and that it was much more likely that Arkinstall was kicking out at the door, which would have kept it from initially latching.

Judge praises process

Given Arkinstall's behaviour to that point, the judge found it would be unreasonable to find the suspect was "suddenly and instantaneously compliant."

Arkinstall was charged following the incident but was acquitted of uttering threats in 2011, in part because the judge did not find Derrick or Kaminski to be credible witnesses. Their accounts of the arrest contradicted the video, which was played by the Hells Angel's lawyer.

Calgary police conducted a review after Arkinstall's trial but determined an investigation was not required, which they've since called a "mistake."

Derrick has been on administrative duties since the charges were laid. 

"We will now be working to get him back to active patrol duty," said CPS spokesperson Emma Poole. 

At the end of his decision, Hawkes praised the process of scrutinizing the video in a public forum. 

"I think there are broader issues at stake when these types of issues arise," said Hawkes. "It is not just the accused who is on trial; it is very much the system that is on trial and the rule of law that is on trial."

"I think it was entirely appropriate in light of the video evidence that there be a full public transparent [process]," Hawkes added.

"I am happy that we were able to do that in this case."