TORONTO -- A Mississauga mother says police Tasered her and her partner before shooting her in the abdomen while responding to a domestic call on Mother’s Day.
In a news release issued on behalf of Chantelle Krupka, the mother said that on May 10 she had been exchanging text messages with her former partner about spending time with her son, of whom they share custody.
“Given that that was Mother’s Day, I had hoped to spend some time with my son. My ex would not agree to this. We exchanged text messages. We argued but there was nothing threatening,” the news release prepared by Krupka’s lawyer reads.
Krupka, who is Black, said her former partner then called Peel Regional Police and showed officers the texts which prompted them to visit her residence.
“He is not Black,” the news release reads. “He knowingly relies on the anti-Black racism of the police to weaponize them against me because I am Black. He’s done this before to harass me and that is exactly what he did on this occasion – in the end he was very successful.”
Krupka said officers called her from outside her residence at 10:30 p.m. on May 10 and asked her to come outside to speak with them.Her partner Michael Headley was also inside the residence at the time.
She said she was afraid to open the door and that officers confirmed she was not under arrest nor did they have a warrant to search the property.
Krupka said one of the officers then began yelling at the mother and making threats to charge her with a crime.
“This made me feel even more afraid to go outside,” she said.
The officers then turned a bright spotlight on the property making it difficult for Krupka to see outside, she said.
Krupka said she then called emergency dispatch to ask for a supervising officer to attend the scene and was told that a sergeant was going to attend.
Krupka said the dispatcher encouraged her to go outside to speak with the police officers, who had now walked up to the front door of the residence.
Krupka and Headley both exited the house. The situation continued to escalate, Krupka said, after she asked the officers to leave her property and accused them of trespassing.
That’s when Krupka says one officer pulled out his Taser and told Headley to return inside.
“Almost immediately, the officer moved quickly toward Michael and Tasered Michael,” she said. “Michael had been standing approximately two metres away from the officer and was not threatening him in any way.”
Krupka said she was terrified and tried to return to the house when she was also Tasered and told that she was under arrest.
“I fell to the ground. I was in excruciating pain. I reached around to my back and realized that I could pull the darts out of my skin. I rolled over and lay on my back on the porch for a moment to try to gain composure,” Krupka said.
Krupka said that she tried to reach her arm towards Headley in an effort to help him and was shot.
“Without any warning, officer Jane Doe shot me. The bullet went into my abdomen. I was in absolute shock. I froze and simply kept asking the officer ‘why?’ She did not respond.”
At a news conference on Tuesday, Krupka said the officer seemed “just as scared actually as I was in the moment once she realized what she had done.”
Krupka said while she was waiting for an ambulance, officers then entered her home to “ensure no one was there.”
The 34-year-old was then transported to a trauma centre for treatment. Headley was taken into custody and held until the following morning, when he was brought to hospital in handcuffs.
Krupka says police contacted her two weeks after the incident and informed her that she had been charged.
She said police also seized property from her home during the search including cash, a cell phone and cannabis—each of which she says is legal.
“I believe that the charges against Michael and myself were laid in an attempt to paint us as criminals and create an after-the-fact justification for the excessive use of force against us. Even if there were any merit to the charges, which we absolutely deny, the use of force was excessive and outrageously abusive. We did not deserve to be Tasered. I did not deserve to be shot.”
READ MORE: SIU probing police-involved shooting in Mississauga that left woman injured
Krupka’s complaint accuses the officers involved with excessive force, unlawful arrest and discreditable conduct. The complaint also alleges systemic racism against Peel Regional Police.
“We request a full investigation of this complaint and the production of a written report.”
The province’s police watchdog has been called in to investigate the incident. The Special Investigation Unit says four investigators and two forensic investigators have been assigned to the case.
In a news release issued Tuesday, the SIU said that investigators have taken possession of the subject officer's firearm, as well as information downloaded from the conducted energy weapon that was used in the incident.
Investigators are asking anyone with information about the incident to contact the SIU.
Peel Regional Police told CTV News Toronto that they cannot comment on the incident while the SIU investigation is underway.
Krupka’s lawyer said that a video of the incident exists but it has not yet been released publicly.
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