Edmonton police officer who kneed defenceless suspect deserves jail time, Crown argues

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An Edmonton police officer who drove his knee into a prone Indigenous man during a 2019 arrest should receive a jail sentence to send a message to other officers, a Crown prosecutor argued Wednesday.

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Const. Michael Partington was convicted in August of assaulting Elliot McLeod, who was restrained beneath another officer who stopped him for riding a bike on a sidewalk without a bell.

Partington claimed he was trying to help his injured colleague handcuff a resisting suspect. But Judge Peter Ayotte disbelieved Partington’s story, calling his actions a “gratuitous assault on an unresisting suspect.”

Partington was placed on unpaid leave after video of the arrest emerged online during widespread unrest following the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.

McLeod, who also uses the surname Houle, is in custody on an unrelated matter. He watched the proceedings from the prisoner dock wearing an orange jumpsuit, his hair in a braid. He submitted a victim impact statement, which the court sealed because it contains sensitive personal information.

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Ayotte will deliver his decision on a sentence at a later date.

Crown case

Crown prosecutor Carla MacPhail argued Partington deserves 60-90 days in jail, followed by 12-18 months of probation.

She said the whole thing began as “a very non-urgent situation” — when fellow Const. Curtis McCargar decided to stop McLeod for a minor bylaw infraction.

McLeod fled but was quickly tackled and punched by McCargar. MacPhail noted that, despite claims from Partington and McCargar that McLeod was actively resisting, video taken by a bystander shows McLeod was silent, face down and immobile when Partington drove his knee into his back.

Partington’s testimony was often “untruthful” and “a continuing affront to the administration of justice,” MacPhail said. She noted Ayotte found Partington’s claim that he simply “placed” his knee on McLeod’s back “beggared belief.”

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MacPhail argued a “stiff sentence” — longer than what a regular member of the public would receive for the same crime — is needed to denounce Partington’s actions and deter other officers.

She added the assault took place against a backdrop of “a history of mistreatment and imbalance of power between Caucasian police officers and Indigenous minorities.”

“The police are sworn and duty-bound to serve and protect all members of the community, including, of course Mr. Houle,” she said.

Defence case

Defence lawyer Michael Danyluik argued jail time is not an appropriate punishment in Partington’s case.

Danyluik noted that compared to McCargar — who was loudly swearing at McLeod — Partington was “calm and dispassionate” and tried to calm everyone down. He added that Partington’s actions were “a momentary lapse in judgment” that did not result in permanent injury to McLeod.

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Jail time is not needed in the case, he argued, because other police officers will be adequately deterred by Partington’s loss of income, his uncertain future as a police officer and the “intense” media scrutiny that has followed his case.

As for the question of race, Danyluik said it is “dangerous” to treat the fact that McLeod is Indigenous as an aggravating factor. He said Partington had no idea of the suspect’s heritage and saw him for all of three seconds before the assault.

Internal disciplinary proceedings against Partington, which could result in his firing, will begin after sentencing.

The last Edmonton police officer to be convicted of assault was Const. Matthew O’Mara, who was sentenced to probation. Notably, the Crown did not seek jail time in that case.

jwakefield@postmedia.com

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