Police explain role during incident at The Carleton

Questions have been raised about how police handled the situation between a patron and doorman at The Carleton Saturday night.

The incident went viral after musician John Wesley Chisholm wrote a note on Facebook that told the story of a patron who might have had too much to drink being assaulted by a bouncer.

The Carleton’s investigation showed it was the patron who assaulted the doorman first, and that all the proper procedures were followed.

All accounts say someone was punched whether it was the doorman, the patron, or both.

Some of the questions stem from a statement former police spokesman Brian Palmeter made in June after a number of violent incidents.

At the time, he said police would be taking a different approach towards people in fights.

“We’ve basically allowed this culture of violence to be almost permitted because nothing’s been done about it,” said Cst. Palmeter. “So even in cases where people aren’t injured, they don’t want anything done, we’re going to pursue Causing Disturbance charges. Because what we really want is this culture of acceptable violence in and around the downtown, and anywhere in HRM, to be over.”

Superintendent Sean Auld has been tasked with investigating the incident that took place Saturday night and he told News 95.7 why there were no arrests in this case.

“Depending on which account you view, it wasn’t a fight at all, it was an employee of an establishment removing a patron from that establishment,” he said. “So there was no overt assault here.”

Auld said that’s why the police statement from the summer on how they will handle violent situations downtown didn’t apply here.

“What that was aimed at is suggesting no, we’re not going to accept this consensual fighting that’s taking place.” he explained. “If we come there and we have evidence from persons in the crowd that watched this, that they were being disturbed, we would charge both parties with causing a disturbance by fighting in a public place.”

He pointed out police have followed through with that approach several times.

Auld will meet with the two officers who responded to the call at The Carleton Thursday.

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