Outcomes - Selected Case Summaries
Categories
Reasonable use of force
Investigation | 27 September 2018
Royal Cayman Islands Police Service (RCIPS)
Police were called to a report of a domestic disturbance. Attending officers were met with hostility and aggression, which resulted in a violent struggle with the complainant. The complainant grabbed one of the officer’s handcuffs and the officer used his baton to retrieve them. As a result, the complainant sustained injuries, which included fractures to two fingers. He was transported to the hospital where he stayed overnight for treatment. The next morning, he was arrested and bailed.
We investigated the incident with a specific focus on whether the use of force during the arrest was reasonable and proportionate. Statements from the officers involved, eye witness accounts and medical evidence were all reviewed as part of the investigation which led the Ombudsman to conclude that the actions of the police were justified and proportionate in the circumstances. The complainant ought not to have taken the officer’s handcuffs.
The complaint was not supported.