WARNING: Disturbing content.
A Calgary police officer shown throwing a handcuffed woman to the ground face-first in a disturbing video released in court in October has been found guilty of assault causing bodily harm.
The charges against Const. Alex Dunn stem from the arrest of a woman in 2017.
Video of the Dec. 13 arrest showed shows Dunn escorting a woman, Dalia Kafi, into the arrest processing unit to have her picture taken.
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Disturbing video shows Calgary officer throw handcuffed woman to ground face first
Kafi is seen standing still against a wall with her hands handcuffed behind her back when Dunn attempts to remove a scarf from her head, at which time she pulls away.
Dunn continues trying to pull the scarf off Kafi’s head as she struggles to stop him.
Eventually, Dunn is seen throwing the handcuffed woman face-first to the ground.
Later, blood can be seen on the ground where her face hit the floor.
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Closing arguments heard in trial for Calgary police officer accused of assault causing bodily harm
During the trial, the defence suggested that Dunn believed that Kafi had slipped her hand out of her handcuffs and therefore could have used them as a weapon.
Lawyer Cory Wilson argued for that reason, Dunn used what is called a “dynamic takedown.”
on Thursday, Judge Michelle Christopher handed down her decision, convicting him of assault causing bodily harm.
Dunn was charged in 2019 at which time he was suspended with pay — but later returned to work with the Calgary Police Service.
He will be sentenced on Dec. 17.
– With files from with from Jessie Weisner, Global News