A struggle between police and a man on Guildford Avenue in Coquitlam early Wednesday resulted in an apprehension under the Mental Health Act and a ride to hospital.
Drivers passing the Coquitlam RCMP detachment may have witnessed the event that saw three police officers trying to subdue the man, who had run into traffic after trying to confront police in the station.
Traffic was halted and no one was injured but marijuana may be implicated in the man’s agitation and verbal outburst, a spokesperson for the Coquitlam RCMP told The Tri-City News.
“His behavior was clearly not normal and he could be a risk to himself. We don’t know if the drugs were a causal factor, we know that drugs were consumed and he was behaving irrationally,” said Cpl. Michael McLaughlin.
The encounter began at the detachment, 2986 Guildford Way, at about 7:30 a.m. Wednesday when a man entered the building yelling and asking to speak to someone from the Ontario police.
“He was yelling and acting out of touch with reality,” said McLaughlin who witnessed the scene.
Police tried to de-escalate the situation by speaking calmly to the man, McLaughlin said, but “he was having none of it,” and ran out into the busy street.
The officers struggled to get control of the man, who was apprehended under the Mental Health Act, driven to hospital where he was certified by a doctor and required to stay to receive treatment.
McLaughlin said it’s not unusual for police to come across people with mental health concerns but apprehensions are only made if the person poses a risk to themselves and others.
These calls calls can be challenging, McLaughlin said, because there’s not always a “cut and dried line” about whether the person should be apprehended, unlike criminal behaviour where laws are broken and arrests are required.
However, he noted that mental health issues are along a continuum, and most people with metal health concerns never come in contact with the law.
But in this case, the man was yelling and screaming, and put himself in danger when he ran out onto Guildford, McLaughlin said.
As for marijuana, and its link to irrational behaviour, McLaughlin was careful to say that he’s not a doctor but police do occasionally deal with persons behaving irrationally after consuming marijuana and cannabis can be a trigger for psychosis.
“You don’t hear about it but police do see it from time to time.”
