Kirk Johnson wins something...
Posted: 23 Dec 2003, 11:10
Canadian Press
Tuesday, December 23, 2003
HALIFAX (CP) - The Halifax police discriminated against heavyweight boxer Kirk Johnson when they ticketed and then towed his Ford Mustang, a human rights commission ruled Tuesday.
In the report, inquiry chair Philip Girard said Const. Michael Sanford discriminated against Johnson when he pulled over the vehicle on April 12, 1998. He ruled Johnson is entitled to damages of $10,000, plus travel expenses. Johnson was asking for $25,000.
"I find that the events of 12 April were very humiliating, stressful and painful for Mr. Johnson," Girard wrote in his decision.
The inquiry chairman accepted the arguments that police pulled over the vehicle, which had Texas licence plates, because they suspected it was being driven by black men.
Girard said that created "a sense of violation" for Johnson, a heavyweight boxer originally from North Preston, N.S.
The inquiry by the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission, which started in July, was set up to decide whether Sanford stopped and seized Johnson's car because he is black.
Johnson was a passenger in the car, which was being driven by his cousin, Earl Fraser.
Girard awarded $1,000 to Fraser, saying, "he went out for a quiet Sunday drive and found his life quite altered through no fault of his own."
Johnson's lawyer argued during hearing that the former Olympic boxer had his car seized because of a "deeply ingrained" culture of racism that tainted the Halifax police department.
Johnson, 31, claimed he and Fraser were driving his 1993 sports car through the city when a police car sped by, looked inside the vehicle's tinted windows and then pulled it over.
The boxer said he produced his registration and insurance papers from Texas, where he had been living, but Sanford misread them, leading him to believe Johnson was without valid documentation.
At least five vehicles showed up on the scene and a tow truck arrived to take away Johnson's black and chrome car.
Sanford's lawyer argued there were several factors that led Sanford, a white officer, to be suspicious of the vehicle. It had tinted windows, which are illegal in the province. It appeared the licence plate was expired and it was from out of the country.
Sanford also claimed he was unable to see inside the car and therefore didn't know the occupants were black.
The inquiry heard nine days of testimony spread over two months with 16 witnesses, including the deputy police chief who apologized for the wrongful seizure but said the mistake was not driven by discrimination.
Johnson also claimed local cops stopped his car 29 times in three months spread over 1997 and 1998. Logs released by the RCMP's Canadian Police Information Centre showed the boxer's car was checked on a database 20 times in under one year.
Tuesday, December 23, 2003
HALIFAX (CP) - The Halifax police discriminated against heavyweight boxer Kirk Johnson when they ticketed and then towed his Ford Mustang, a human rights commission ruled Tuesday.
In the report, inquiry chair Philip Girard said Const. Michael Sanford discriminated against Johnson when he pulled over the vehicle on April 12, 1998. He ruled Johnson is entitled to damages of $10,000, plus travel expenses. Johnson was asking for $25,000.
"I find that the events of 12 April were very humiliating, stressful and painful for Mr. Johnson," Girard wrote in his decision.
The inquiry chairman accepted the arguments that police pulled over the vehicle, which had Texas licence plates, because they suspected it was being driven by black men.
Girard said that created "a sense of violation" for Johnson, a heavyweight boxer originally from North Preston, N.S.
The inquiry by the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission, which started in July, was set up to decide whether Sanford stopped and seized Johnson's car because he is black.
Johnson was a passenger in the car, which was being driven by his cousin, Earl Fraser.
Girard awarded $1,000 to Fraser, saying, "he went out for a quiet Sunday drive and found his life quite altered through no fault of his own."
Johnson's lawyer argued during hearing that the former Olympic boxer had his car seized because of a "deeply ingrained" culture of racism that tainted the Halifax police department.
Johnson, 31, claimed he and Fraser were driving his 1993 sports car through the city when a police car sped by, looked inside the vehicle's tinted windows and then pulled it over.
The boxer said he produced his registration and insurance papers from Texas, where he had been living, but Sanford misread them, leading him to believe Johnson was without valid documentation.
At least five vehicles showed up on the scene and a tow truck arrived to take away Johnson's black and chrome car.
Sanford's lawyer argued there were several factors that led Sanford, a white officer, to be suspicious of the vehicle. It had tinted windows, which are illegal in the province. It appeared the licence plate was expired and it was from out of the country.
Sanford also claimed he was unable to see inside the car and therefore didn't know the occupants were black.
The inquiry heard nine days of testimony spread over two months with 16 witnesses, including the deputy police chief who apologized for the wrongful seizure but said the mistake was not driven by discrimination.
Johnson also claimed local cops stopped his car 29 times in three months spread over 1997 and 1998. Logs released by the RCMP's Canadian Police Information Centre showed the boxer's car was checked on a database 20 times in under one year.
