'Officer 728' won't face charges for pepper-spraying student protesters

No charges will be laid againstMontreal police officer Stfanie Trudeau forpepper-spraying a group of students taking part in a demonstration against tuition hikes inMay 2012.

The May 20, 2012 incident, whichtookplaceatthe corner of Ste-Catherine and St-Hubert Streets, wasrecordedon a cellphone video that went viral online, withnearly half a million hits on YouTube.

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Quebec's Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DCPP) reviewed the evidence and concluded the video didn't allow prosecutors to "appreciate the entire event in context."

The DCPPalso said thestudent demonstration had already been declared illegal at the time of the incident, and that Trudeau's actions didn't exceed limitsset outin Article 25 of the CriminalCode (whichlaysdown the ground rulesfor the use of "necessary force" by an officer of the law.)

After the incident went viral, Trudeau wasremovedfrom "student protest"duty pending an internal inquiry, butavoided suspension.The police ethics commission also launched an investigation.

A few months later, in October 2012,Trudeau was once again accused of using excessive force, after the internet release of a cellphone video showingTrudeau and at least two other officers involved in a forceful confrontation in a stairwell on Papineau Avenue. Trudeau was seenscreaming and putting one man in a headlock.

The three men and one woman involved say the use of force was unprovoked and that they had no idea what was going on or why they were being detained.Charges against the the three menfor assaulting a peace officer and obstructing police were later dropped.

Trudeauwas suspended from dutyafter that second incident, and Montreal Police Chief Marc Parent apologized to the public for her behaviour. He called it "unacceptable" and saying Trudeau "absolutely" posed a danger to the public.

Trudeau could still face sanctions arising from that incident, ranging from a reprimand to dismissal.