Woman who called for help with domestic violence ended up with broken jaw, police report says
CBC
A woman wound up with a broken jaw and other injuries after calling for help fleeing domestic violence, according to a report from the New Brunswick police oversight agency.
Some experts say the case is an example of inadequate police training and should be a wake-up call for public institutions that interact with victims of abuse.
Nova Scotia's Serious Incident Response Team, known as SIRT, reviewed the case this year as part of its mandate to investigate serious injuries that arise through interactions with police in New Brunswick.
In a report at the end of October, SIRT director Erin Nauss described a situation that began with a call from a woman to the Horizon Health Network detox unit in Fredericton.
"She had a lengthy conversation with the unit and explained she did not need to attend a detox program, but rather, she was looking to leave an abusive situation in her home and needed a place to stay," Nauss wrote.
The report doesn't say why the woman called the detox unit for help, but says she made suicidal statements on the phone and reported taking some prescription medication. Horizon contacted the Fredericton Police Force to conduct a wellness check.
Body-worn camera footage reviewed by SIRT shows the woman was "very upset" when three police officers arrived at her home.
The footage shows her repeatedly asking the officers to leave her apartment, saying "she did not want to deal with male officers as she did not feel safe," Nauss wrote.
The woman told SIRT investigators she believed her ex-husband had called the police.
The officers requested the Mobile Crisis Unit visit, as the woman again made suicidal comments, but they called that off when she began to barricade herself in a bedroom.
Police ultimately handcuffed and detained the woman under the Mental Health Act, the report said, and transported her to the Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital.
Becoming increasingly upset, the woman was taken to a seclusion room when they arrived at the Chalmers emergency department. She told investigators she worried about being "trapped for hours" in a bright room.
As she resisted going into the seclusion room, still handcuffed and with an officer at her side, the woman fell forward to the floor.
Medical records show she suffered a jaw fracture, a cut to her chin requiring stitches and several chipped teeth.
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