Indigenous grandfather wants complaint revisited after Vancouver police refuse in-person apology

Years after they were wrongfully handcuffed by police in downtown Vancouver, Maxwell Johnson and his granddaughter are still waiting for the officers involved to deliver an in-person apology on the Heiltsuk Nation.

Constables Canon Wong and Mitchel Tong were invited to participate in a Heiltsuk apology ceremony in October 2022, but did not attend, for reasons that have never been disclosed.

On Wednesday, Johnson asked B.C.'s Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner to reconsider the disciplinary measures handed down against Wong and Tong for the incident, arguing they have failed to properly make amends.

"There is a hole in me right now, as my family, my people, and my culture are being disrespected and cast aside," Johnson said in a statement. "If the constables don't come to Bella Bella and apologize in the proper way, the hole in me, and in our community, will remain."

The family's troubling encounter with police took place in December 2019, while Johnson was trying to help his granddaughter, who was then 12 years old, open a bank account in downtown Vancouver. A bank employee suspected the family of fraud because they were using Indian Status Cards as identification, and called 911.

What happened next was reviewed for the OPCC by a retired judge, who found Wong and Tong both committed misconduct by removing Johnson and his granddaughter from the bank "recklessly" and "without reasonable cause."

The officers' decision to then place the family members in handcuffs was deemed to be "unnecessary force."

According to Johnson, both officers told the judge during the review that they were willing to deliver an in-person apology.

"I felt we were finally going to achieve justice and closure," Johnson said. "Unfortunately, it has become clear that they don’t want to make the substance of a meaningful apology."

The family would like the OPCC to mandate an apology from the constables in a new ceremony.

Other officials from the Vancouver Police Department attended the initial Heiltsuk ceremony last year, including Chief Const. Adam Palmer, who told those in attendance he would work with the constables to arrange an in-person apology.

In a news release, the Heiltsuk Nation said it has since "made efforts" to organize one – which included reaching out to Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim, who chairs the Vancouver Police Board – without success.

While Wong and Tong have written apology letters to the family, the Heiltsuk Nation has stressed a "culturally appropriate" apology, in the spirit of reconciliation, would have to be made face-to-face.

"The ongoing failure of their constables to respect Heiltsuk legal traditions and culture, and to apologize in an appropriate way, is systemic racism in action,” Chief Marilyn Slett said in a statement. "There has been an opportunity for the (Vancouver Police Board) and the constables to demonstrate their support and commitment to anti-racism, reconciliation, and (the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples), but they haven’t done it."

Board vice-chair Faye Wightman declined to answer when asked whether any efforts have been made to arrange an in-person apology with Wong and Tong since October 2022.

"The application is now before the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner. In order to protect the integrity of the OPCC’s process, it would be inappropriate to comment," Wightman wrote in an email statement.

At the time of last year's ceremony, the Vancouver Police Union said Wong and Tong were unable to attend for "personal reasons."

With files from CTV News Vancouver's Ben Miljure and Lisa Steacy