A mother in Mount Moriah, NL, opposes the RCMP’s explanation for why two police officers entered her home without permission through an unlocked door early Sunday morning. “After a prolonged period of knocking, doorbells and verbal communication, police entered the home through an unlocked door, verbally announcing its presence,” the RCMP said in a statement on Tuesday. In an interview with CBC News on Thursday, Cortney Pike said that statement was not accurate. “I just feel like they are trying to justify why they came into my house,” he said. “They just say that the doorbell rang and when no one answered, they had a possible reason to enter the house.” She said that the claim that the police rang her bell surprised her greatly. “We do not have a bell. This house never had a bell. Never.” Cortney Pike sent these photos to CBC News and said they show the doors of her house. No door seems to have a bell. In a statement Tuesday, the RCMP said police rang a bell before entering. (Submitted by Cortney Pike) CBC News asked the RCMP to respond to Pike’s statement. Earlier this week, Pike told CBC News she woke up around 5:30 p.m. on Sunday with the sounds of footsteps and voices inside her house in western Newfoundland – footsteps and voices belonging to two RCMP officers who had entered her house through an unlocked door. Pike said police woke up her 11-year-old daughter and questioned her while throwing a flashlight at her face. Pike said she would have heard if the police had beaten and made noise before entering, otherwise her dog would have started barking. “Obviously they had to sneak in very quietly,” he said. The statement from RCMP states that the police entered the house because they were looking for a missing 17-year-old boy. The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, which has jurisdiction over nearby Corner Brook, said the young man was later found safe.
“Very unusual”: CCLA
Abby Deshman, director of the Criminal Justice Program at the Canadian Civil Liberties Union, said the incident was worrying. “It seems very unusual for the police to enter a house at night and speak directly to a minor without asking where his parents were,” he said. Abby Deshman, Criminal Justice Program Director for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, said the incident described by Pike was worrying. (CBC) Desman said police are allowed to enter a home without permission, but only in certain emergencies or life-threatening situations or if they have specific information. “They can’t just wander into someone’s house because a missing person has been reported. They need more than that.” Deshman said that in Newfoundland and Labrador, a judge may also grant police permission to enter a home, but there is no indication that this happened.
“It really upset me”
Deshman said situations like the one Pike describes are not always reported. “Certainly, however, we hear from people in communities – and particularly marginalized and racist communities – that they feel their rights are being violated on a regular basis by the police,” he said. Pike said she had no news from police after the incident, but had made a formal complaint to the RCMP. He said he was also in contact with legal advisers about the incident and is considering filing a lawsuit. Pike said she felt the RCMP statement, which she first saw in the media, was intended to make her look like a liar. He said he wanted a public apology. “I had no reason to make a story like this, you know what I mean? They came into my daughter’s bedroom and it really upset me.” Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
title: “The Rcmp Account For How They Got Into My House Is Wrong Says Mom " ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-06” author: “Francisco Brown”
A mother in Mount Moriah, NL, opposes the RCMP’s explanation for why two police officers entered her home without permission through an unlocked door early Sunday morning. “After a prolonged period of knocking, doorbells and verbal communication, police entered the home through an unlocked door, verbally announcing its presence,” the RCMP said in a statement on Tuesday. In an interview with CBC News on Thursday, Cortney Pike said that statement was not accurate. “I just feel like they are trying to justify why they came into my house,” he said. “They just say that the doorbell rang and when no one answered, they had a possible reason to enter the house.” She said that the claim that the police rang her bell surprised her greatly. “We do not have a bell. This house never had a bell. Never.” Cortney Pike sent these photos to CBC News and said they show the doors of her house. No door seems to have a bell. In a statement Tuesday, the RCMP said police rang a bell before entering. (Submitted by Cortney Pike) CBC News asked the RCMP to respond to Pike’s statement. Earlier this week, Pike told CBC News she woke up around 5:30 p.m. on Sunday with the sounds of footsteps and voices inside her house in western Newfoundland – footsteps and voices belonging to two RCMP officers who had entered her house through an unlocked door. Pike said police woke up her 11-year-old daughter and questioned her while throwing a flashlight at her face. Pike said she would have heard if the police had beaten and made noise before entering, otherwise her dog would have started barking. “Obviously they had to sneak in very quietly,” he said. The statement from RCMP states that the police entered the house because they were looking for a missing 17-year-old boy. The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, which has jurisdiction over nearby Corner Brook, said the young man was later found safe.
“Very unusual”: CCLA
Abby Deshman, director of the Criminal Justice Program at the Canadian Civil Liberties Union, said the incident was worrying. “It seems very unusual for the police to enter a house at night and speak directly to a minor without asking where his parents were,” he said. Abby Deshman, director of criminal justice for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, said the incident described by Pike was worrying. (CBC) Desman said police are allowed to enter a home without permission, but only in certain emergencies or life-threatening situations or if they have specific information. “They can’t just wander into someone’s house because a missing person has been reported. They need more than that.” Deshman said that in Newfoundland and Labrador, a judge may also grant police permission to enter a home, but there is no indication that this happened.
“It really upset me”
Deshman said situations like the one Pike describes are not always reported. “Certainly, however, we hear from people in communities – and particularly marginalized and racist communities – that they feel their rights are being violated on a regular basis by the police,” he said. Pike said she had no news from police after the incident, but had made a formal complaint to the RCMP. He said he was also in contact with legal advisers about the incident and is considering filing a lawsuit. Pike said she felt the RCMP statement, which she first saw in the media, was intended to make her look like a liar. He said he wanted a public apology. “I had no reason to make a story like this, you know what I mean? They came into my daughter’s bedroom and it really upset me.” Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
