Good morning. My question is for Ms. Klineberg or Ms. Kane.
In the brief the Barreau du Québec submitted when it testified, there are important elements regarding citizen arrests that leap out at me. The brief states the following:
In addition, the fact that a citizen's arrest must be made "within a reasonable time" after the commission of the alleged offence leaves the way open for a possible abuse of power. Any arrest includes elements of unforeseeability arising from the use of the force [...]
The Barreau provides examples and says that, in many cases, although police officers are well trained and very skilled, things can go wrong during an arrest, even when the people involved are not criminals.
I would like to know if you have considered minimizing risks in citizen arrests. That remains a considerable power. It’s a matter of respecting the law and the rights of the arrested person.