Montreal’s mayor is asking for a moratorium on random police checks one week after the city’s police chief revealed 16 officers are under investigation for alleged racist acts. Speaking to the media about the allegations on Friday, Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada says her husband, who is Black, has been randomly stopped by police while driving on multiple occasions. “Like many other Black people in our city and the racialized people this happens too many times,” the mayor told reporters. The call to suspend street checks comes one week after a rare, late-night news conference by the Montreal police chief. Chief Fady Dagher revealed a Montreal-North patrol unit has been disbanded over racism allegations. Two officers have been suspended and 14 others were reassigned. Martinez Ferrada says a moratorium would be a good first step to repair relations with a community that is outraged. “I think we have to ask ourselves the question. I think it is also a way to rebuild trust with citizens and it’s something that I think the police should be looking into,” she said. She wants to see officers equipped with body cameras. There is already $40 million in the city budget for it, but the province still needs to approve. “This will not solve the problem. This is one tool that we have in our toolbox, but it will not solve the whole thing,” the mayor added. The premier says the officers’ alleged actions were unacceptable. According to media reports, they ripped out or cut off people’s dreadlocks and collected them like “trophies.” There are now calls for an independent public inquiry. Premier Christine Fréchette has not ruled it out, but says the province would assign an observer to the police investigation. “We want to see the results of that inquiry before identifying the next steps. But I’d say everything is on the table, but we need to see the results of the current actions,” the premier said. The Montreal police service was supposed to present its annual report on Monday, but it’s been postponed. Instead, councillors are summoning Chief Dagher to a closed-door meeting to discuss the allegations of racism within his own force. Late Friday afternoon, the city announced that residents will get a chance to ask the Montreal police about the allegations at a public meeting on July 8.
