The B.C. man shown on video being kicked by a Kelowna Mountie during a brutal arrest says he's poised to accept a deal that would make weapons charges against him disappear.
In the Jan. 7 video, Const. Geoff Mantler can be seen kicking 51-year-old Buddy Tavares as he knelt on the ground beside his truck.
Mounties had pulled over Tavares in response to a 911 call regarding a domestic violence incident and arrested him after finding a shotgun in his vehicle. He was charged with careless use of firearm.
Tavares told CTV News that he's been told that Crown prosecutors may drop the charge if he agrees to a weapons prohibition.
"That was discussed. Whether it's happening, I don't know. But it's a possibility," he said. "I think they just want this to go away."
But Tavares vows that he won't go away. He's expecting an apology from the highest levels of the RCMP in B.C., and is planning to throw everything he has into a lawsuit.
"Like I said about being accountable, the pocketbook hurts," he said.
Abbotsford police were called in to investigate the incident, and have recommended a charge of assault causing bodily harm against Mantler. The Crown has yet to approve the charge.
At the time of his arrest, Tavares was recovering from a brain injury and trying to regain his skills at the piano. The kick in the face was a huge setback.
"I was back to like when I got out of hospital. Except now, the left hand knows what it's playing, the right hand knows what it's playing -- they're just not playing together," Tavares said.
And his anger has not softened at all -- not just about the kick, but also about how it felt to see Mantler point his gun at him as Tavares sat trembling behind the wheel of his truck.
"[It was] terrifying, beyond unnerving. I'm familiar with that gun and it will make a big hole. Especially when he tells you, ‘I will shoot you,'" Tavares said.
"That's the worst feeling I've ever had."
His next scheduled court appearance is on Monday.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Kent Molgat
