A Quebec Court judge has ruled that police officers who searched a suspect wearing a “man-bag” slung over his shoulder and found a loaded weapon did not engage in profiling.
Marcus Nimeri was arrested by Montreal police officers in October 2023. He was carrying an illegally modified handgun in his shoulder bag.
At trial, his lawyer argued that the search was illegal and that his client had been the victim of profiling because he was wearing a “man bag” — a popular item among Black and Arab communities, he argued.
The police submitted at trial that the majority of the weapons they seized were in these shoulder bags.
In an April 18 decision, Quebec Court Judge Dennis Galiatsatos concluded that there was no evidence that these bags were particularly popular with certain racialized communities.
He found Nimeri guilty on all three counts: possession of a loaded prohibited handgun, carrying a concealed weapon, and obstructing peace officers in the performance of their duties.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on April 24, 2024.