A police officer who repeatedly assaulted members of the public while on duty should expect to lose their job. If they were to remain on the force, public confidence in police would suffer “enormous damage,” a professional misconduct sentencing hearing was told on Thursday.
“The community doesn’t want Const. (Corey) McArthur to remain with the service,” said Guelph Police Service lawyer David Migicovsky in making final submissions in the case seeking McArthur’s dismissal in relation to the officer’s 2016 assault of a youth in mental distress who was handcuffed to a bed at Guelph General Hospital. “There has been an exceptional level of public interest (in the case).”
McArthur pleaded guilty to a criminal assault charge in 2018 stemming from that attack and was granted a conditional discharge, along with three years of probation and was ordered to perform 240 hours of community service.
He pleaded guilty to discreditable conduct at the onset of the subsequent Police Services Act hearing in 2020, leading to the sentencing hearing currently underway.
“The community is watching this very carefully. Const. McArthur cannot be hidden,” said Migicovsky, who noted hospital security footage of the assault uploaded to YouTube has been watched more than 37,000 times and media has followed the case with more than 40 news articles. “This community needs to know police officers who engage in this kind of conduct will be suitably disciplined.”
McArthur, who was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) after the 2016 assault, hopes to hold onto his job and, through lawyer Joseph Markson, has indicated he’s willing to accept any position GPS deems suitable for him.
The constable has been receiving treatment for the condition for about six years now.
During Thursday’s final submissions – a continuation from two days in June – Migicovsky argued McArthur’s guilty plea in both criminal court and professional misconduct hearing isn’t a sign of remorse or acknowledgment of the seriousness of his misconduct, which could lend to rehabilitation, but rather had more to do with the strength of the evidence against him.
“It’s hard to imagine how one could watch the video and not see the writing on the wall,” he said. “That lack of recognition calls into question his potential for rehabilitation.”
He further pointed to reports from McArthur’s therapist which noted the constable’s belief he had acted appropriately and was being mistreated by GPS, that other officers wouldn’t have been charged as he was.
“He still doesn’t think he did anything wrong. He thinks he’s the victim,” Migicovsky said, referring to a therapist's report from 2017, prior to McArthur’s conviction.
“He did not apologize in criminal court. He did not apologize in this process,” the GPS lawyer added later, noting McArthur has not followed in the footsteps of some other officers facing misconduct hearings by writing a letter of apology to either his victim or the community. “This is not somebody who gets it.”
McArthur’s previous criminal assault conviction relates to his actions during the 2008 arrest of a man in Downtown Guelph. Following trial, McArthur received an absolute discharge for that incident, but was subsequently docked 10 days pay as a result of the Police Service Act charges that followed.
McArthur also faced a private citizen’s charge of assault causing bodily harm in 2012 that was later dropped.
On at least three occasions, criminal court judges have accused McArthur of being dishonest in his testimony, Migicovsky noted, including the 2008 assault charge against him.
While pleased McArthur is receiving treatment for PTSD, Migicovsky suggested the officer’s history of anger issues and physical over-reaction when dealing with members of the public show the 2016 assault was not an isolated incident but rather a “personality trait” that does not need to be accommodated by letting him keep his job.
The hearing adjourned for the day after GPS submissions wrapped up but is scheduled to resume on Tuesday afternoon in order for Markson to respond to Migicovsky.
