Former RCMP officer alleges racial profiling by Quebec police in complaints

Maurice Carvery, a former Black RCMP officer, is alleging racial profiling by Quebec police services, according to a complaint filed alongside the Red Coalition advocacy group. The incident, which occurred on July 24 in Longueuil, Quebec, began when Carvery was smoking outside a restaurant. An officer approached him to ask for identification, ignoring any surroundings and refusing to provide a reason for the request.

Carvery refused to identify himself, causing more officers to surround him. Eventually, 11 officers surrounded Carvery, and one of them pointed a taser at him, despite Carvery offering no resistance. The officers handcuffed and threw Carvery to the ground, only releasing him after Carvery’s friend informed them of his status as a former RCMP officer.

During the ordeal, the officer took Carvery’s phone and deleted parts of the video he had taken. Carvery claims he was never informed of being under arrest and has not been charged. The Longueuil police service acknowledged the incident but declined to comment further. The Red Coalition argues that Carvery’s claims of racial profiling are valid, stating that officers cannot ask individuals to identify themselves without reason and that the pretext of a smoking bylaw violation was used to obtain his identification.