The disabled woman shown in surveillance footage being shoved to the ground by a Vancouver police officer says cops need to treat people in the Downtown Eastside with more respect.

Twenty-six-year-old Sandy suffers from cerebral palsy and walks with a pronounced limp. She has lived in Canada's poorest neighbourhood for seven years.

She was walking in front of the Lux Hotel on East Hastings Street on June 9 when she came upon three police officers, walking side-by-side. When she tried to walk between them, one of the officers pushed her to the ground.

Sandy told CTV News she did nothing to provoke the officers.

"He pushed me down because he thought I was going to grab their gun, and I told him three times I have a disability -- cerebral palsy -- and then all three of them walked away and didn't pick me up."

The entire exchange was caught on surveillance video. The officers are shown walking away while Sandy lies on the ground; after a few moments, someone else helps her up.

Sandy says she never thought she'd need to protect herself from the police.

"I get picked on all the time, but I never expect that from the officers or people that are higher power," she said. "I know they're good most of the time, but stuff like this happens. It's not right."

Sandy believes that the Vancouver Police Department needs to train its officers to treat residents of the Downtown Eastside with more respect.

"They've got to have better training. They judge the Eastside a lot because we're poor, and they take advantage of us here a lot," Sandy told CTV News.

"Do I trust the police? Ha…. I can't answer that. It comes and goes."

A statement released to media by the VPD Thursday said the officer reported the incident to his supervisor several hours after it happened. His actions, and why no one helped Sandy, are now the subject of a probe by the force's Professional Standards Section.

The officer involved has also apologized for his actions.

"Our officers are well-trained, but they do make mistakes, and when they do, we've apologized for that," Cpl. Jana McGuinness told reporters.

The officer does regular foot patrols in the Downtown Eastside and has been on the job since March of 2009. Sandy has no previous record with police.