JUSTICE FOR ALL
No charges laid in Lethbridge police takedown of Star Wars Stormtrooper
Coco Vanilla Galactic Cantina owner Bradley Whalen told Postmedia Wednesday he was unsurprised by the results of the investigation
A woman dressed in a Star Wars stormtrooper costume was confronted by Lethbridge police on May 4, 2020. She was released without charges at the scene. PHOTO BY @XEVIUSS/SCREENGRAB
The teen was dressed as a Stormtrooper and carrying a toy gun, part of a promotion for Star Wars Day on May 4 — a pun on the famous film franchise line, “May the force be with you.”
The woman suffered a minor injury from the police response, according to Lethbridge police.
The investigation was reviewed by the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) and the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service, and found criminal charges were not warranted, according to a news release from Lethbridge police Wednesday.
Lethbridge police will now begin an internal professional conduct investigation into the takedown.
A video of the encounter went viral worldwide, with police drawing criticism from many for their handling of the situation.
Coco Vanilla Galactic Cantina owner Bradley Whalen told Postmedia on Wednesday that he wasn’t surprised by the results of the investigation.
He said he had problems with the process of a nearby jurisdiction’s police force taking up the investigation, with ASIRT’s involvement limited to ensuring the investigation was conducted independently and objectively.
“It was pretty much a joke,” Whalen said. “We know that they know that they did wrong.”
Whalen said he talked with Medicine Hat investigators once, and said neither he nor the employee had received any contact or apology from Lethbridge police.
He questioned why the investigation took more than half a year, with the outcome released days before Christmas.
“I didn’t expect anything else. I don’t know why it took so long. It’s just to make people wait and forget, I guess,” Whalen said. “They didn’t want anybody asking questions and they didn’t want anyone to be available for comment this afternoon.”
— With files from Brodie Thomas
Twitter: @jasonfherring
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