FILE PHOTO.

(BEN BULMER / iNFOnews.ca)

Thomas was in bed at his mother's house in the throes of a mental health crisis when two Vernon RCMP officers arrived at his bedside.

His mother had called 911 saying her son was threatening to break things in the house and kill himself.

The officers began talking to him and tried to apprehend him under the Mental Health Act, forcing him to go to the hospital.

Refusing to be put in handcuffs, Thomas lashed out hitting one of the police officers and in turn was punched in the head by one of the RCMP officers.

Thomas – not his real name – was then taken to Vernon Jubilee Hospital, where staff cleaned up cuts to his ear. A psychiatric assessment determined he didn't need to be committed to hospital.

But instead of being taken home, he was then taken to the RCMP cells where he spent a few hours before eventually being charged with assaulting a police officer.

The details of Thomas's case were heard at the Vernon courthouse Oct. 5 when the 20-year-old appeared on one charge of assaulting a police officer.

Judge Clarke Burnett said the case highlighted that using the police to deal with mental health crises is not the best option.

The court heard three different versions of what took place on that day.

Crown prosecutor Margaret Cissell told the court that Thomas had said "'I have nothing left to live for" several times to the officers. Police had then spoken to him at length and gained his compliance with reasoning and talking.

However, once Thomas was outside he then punched the officer.

Defence lawyer Claire Mastop disagreed with the Crown's version of events.

"It was a takedown by the police that was not all verbal, soft hand control methods were apparently used and during that (Thomas) was injured," Mastop said. "So it wasn't quite as clean and simple as my friend made it out to be."

Mastop said while Thomas should not have hit the police officer his emotional circumstances were very heightened at the time.

Thomas's version provided some insight into the situation.

"I was initially crying and they said I was going under the Mental Health Act, I was scared and I was simply saying I thought I was an adult and I didn't say I was going to kill myself," Thomas told the court. "I was crying during that time... I did resist and everything like that... and then he punched me so that's when I stopped."

The Crown had asked for a conditional discharge, meaning Thomas wouldn't have a criminal record if he complied with 12 months of probation.

However, during the sentencing, in an unusual move, the Crown reduced the amount of probation it was asking for to six months.

Judge Burnett still thought the sentence was too harsh.

"Given the background of how this incident unfolded, I can understand why a young man would be a bit perturbed that he's about to be taken involuntarily to the hospital," Judge Burnett said. "At the end of the day this young man was taken to the hospital, it's determined that the doesn't need to stay there, and then he goes and spends a few hours in a jail cell, he's got no criminal history, it sounds like a very unfortunate set of circumstances."

The judge said it would be much better if there were mental health nurses available to deal with such situations.

The court heard how Thomas had a history of mental illness and had been receiving counselling since he was 12 years old. For reasons not explained, he was no longer receiving the support he once had.

Ultimately, Judge Burnett decided Thomas shouldn't be penalized for what happened.

"I'm going to grant you an absolute discharge... because you've shown up in court today you're going to leave here without any further sanctions being placed upon you," the judge said.

The judge recommended that Thomas reconnect with his former counsellors and continue working on the relationship with his mother.

"I'd rather have you spending more time talking to your mom than spending more time talking to a probation officer," Judge Burnett said.

The 20-year-old walked out of the courtroom without a criminal record.

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