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May 2020 Incident

Trial dates set for local Mountie charged with assault during in custody incident

Aug 24, 2022 | 2:00 PM

Trial dates have been set for a Red Deer RCMP officer charged with assault causing bodily harm during an in custody incident two years ago.

Cst. Vincent Beaudoin-Turcotte, 29, is scheduled for trial in Red Deer provincial court from April 3-5, 2023.

Alberta RCMP say it was May 15, 2020, at about 8:30 p.m. when the Red Deer detachment received a 9-1-1 hangup. Members attended a residence, where the call was determined to have come from, to find an adult male causing a disturbance.

RCMP arrested the male on outstanding warrants and in breach of release conditions. The male was taken to Red Deer detachment and placed into the cells area.

Several hours later, on May 16, RCMP say a number of officers attended the cells to remove the male for fingerprinting, as he had previously been uncooperative. A physical altercation ensued between one of the officers and the male, resulting in the male being injured.

He was taken to hospital for assessment and treatment.

That same day, the Director of Law Enforcement was notified, and the incident was then deemed to be out of the scope of the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT), meaning the investigation into the altercation would remain with RCMP.

As a result of that investigation, Beaudoin-Turcotte was charged and placed on administrative duties, say Alberta RCMP.

“The Alberta RCMP believes in processes that seek the facts, and it’s important that processes taken to assess the actions of all those involved, including the police, are fair, transparent, and defendable,” said Alberta RCMP in a release. “This is why, when we become aware of a situation that requires review, we immediately initiate internal processes to look at the totality of the incident, including the actions of the RCMP, the use of force during the incident, and the duty status of the member.”

Beaudoin-Turcotte has over four years of service with RCMP, and once the criminal matter has been resolved, the RCMP say his duty status will be reviewed.