RCMP Const. Lacy Browning is being sued by UBCO Mona Wang.
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July 01, 2020 - 10:21 AM
More than 344,000 people have signed a petition calling for the firing of a RCMP officer after footage was released showing a UBCO student being dragged from her apartment by the officer.
“We need to do better for our citizens struggling with their mental health. They should be met with trained professionals, not uniformed officers. The most vulnerable people in our communities should not be dragged down hallways, pulled by the hair, and stepped on in their times of need,” reads the Justice for Mona Wang petition on Change.org.
The video that has been circulating widely was released June 22 and has gained widespread condemnation in the court of popular opinion.
In it, a woman identified as Mona Wang can be seen with hands cuffed behind her back, being dragged, on her stomach, down a hallway of her Academy Way apartment building by an RCMP officer identified as Const. Lacy Browning.
Once in the lobby, the officer can be seen at one point stepping on Wang's head then later lifting it. They appear to have a conversation and eventually, Wang is lifted up and walks with Const. Browning from the building.
While the video was released last month, the matter has been making its way through the courts since March 26 when Wang filed a civil lawsuit addressing the Jan. 20 incident. The RCMP responded in June.
READ MORE: 'Those directly involved are being held accountable,' Kelowna's top cop says of recent videos involving police force
Wang's lawsuit indicates she was in distress and was abused in her moment of need by the very people who are supposed to protect her, while the RCMP says the officer at the centre of the controversy was doing her job as expected, given Wang's erratic behaviour which included what appears to be a suicide attempt and "asking to be killed" by the officer.
The petition calls on the RCMP, Government of Canada, Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran and others to fire Browning and for her to be charged with assault.
The incident is currently being investigated by the Kelowna RCMP.
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