MP shocked by Tasering of Northern Ontario teen

NEWS RELEASE

CHARLIE ANGUS, MP TIMMINS-JAMES BAY

************************* Angus blasts use of Tasers on Northern children OTTAWA – (February 3) - NDP MP Charlie Angus (Timmins-James Bay) blasted the use of Tasers by Ontario Provincial Police officers on a First Nations child, barely 14 years old, who suffers from mental illness and is incarcerated.

According to reports, the child was Tasered by police for picking at peeling paint in her prison cell in Northwestern Ontario.

Angus [shown in a SooToday.com file photo] says the incident shows that First Nations children unfortunately find themselves in situations where they are at risk of abuse, due to less stringent standards regarding access to health care services, help for those suffering from mental illness and access to social services. “A child suffering from mental illness should never have been put in prison in the first place," Angus said. "In First Nations communities throughout the country, we see children ending up in the hands of the police simply because there aren’t enough health care professionals and social workers to deal with these issues. If this young girl had been subdued with a baton, that would be considered abuse. Zapping her with 40,000 volts should be viewed in the same way." Angus says Canada continues to fall further and further behind in ensuring the most basic protections for First Nations children in crisis. "We have signed international covenant to protect children. The lack of resources from the federal government has put too many children at risk. It's not sufficient to argue about whether or not Tasers can hurt children. We need to be demanding to know why children are being subjected to such treatment in the first place," Angus said.

*************************