Sentencing hearing to resume for officer with history of violence, 2 years after conviction

The sentencing hearing for a Calgary police officer convicted of assault resumes Monday after it was derailed earlier this year when the Crown's key witness broke down, telling the judge his PTSD had been triggered by the anxiety of testifying.

Trevor Lindsay was a constable with the Calgary police service until he quit last September.

More than two years ago, Lindsay was convicted of the 2015 aggravated assault against Daniel Haworth who suffered a fractured skull and brain injury when, while handcuffed, he was thrown on the ground headfirst by the officer.

Lindsay has not yet been sentenced for that crime.

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In 2013, Lindsay was involved in another violent attack — and prosecutor John Baharustani wants Court of Queen's Bench Justice Michael Lema to rule the use of force was an assault, which could increase Lindsay's sentence. 

The victim of that attack, Godfred Addai-Nyamekye, stopped testifying mid-hearing, telling the judge his PTSD was "through the roof."

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On a frigid December night in 2013, with temperatures nearing -30 C, Addai-Nyamekye was dumped by other officers in the East Village at a time when the neighbourhood was sparsely populated and largely under construction. 

He called 911 several times (it was the only phone number he could dial from a locked cell phone) and eventually, Lindsay showed up.

Addai-Nyamekye believed the officer was there to help him, but instead, Lindsay began to attack him using punches, knee strikes and a taser.

Video taken from the responding CPS helicopter shows the violence.

WATCH | Helicopter footage shows Const. Trevor Lindsay attacking Godfred Addai-Nyamekye.

Above the Law: Helicopter Footage

4 years ago

Duration 0:54

After being abandoned by police in a desolate construction site in -28 C weather, Godfred Addai-Nyamekye called 911. After 15 minutes, a different officer, Const. Trevor Lindsay, arrived on the scene, and Addai-Nyamekye was tasered and beaten. Following the incident, Addai-Nyamekye was charged with having assaulted Const. Lindsay, but helicopter footage of the event helped to prove otherwise.

Criminal charges were never laid against Lindsay for his use of force against Addai-Nyamekye, but he did face charges under the Alberta Police Act until he quit the service last year ahead of a disciplinary hearing. 

A two-week sentencing hearing was supposed to wrap in early May, but was derailed when Addai-Nyamekye said he couldn't continue his testimony. 

On May 25, 2015, Daniel Haworth was arrested by Lindsay, suspected of breaking into his ex-girlfriend's home and stealing coins from her collection.

Haworth was taken to the arrest processing unit (APU) where surveillance video captured what then took place in the parking lot. 

There, video shows Lindsay pulled Haworth, who was handcuffed, out of the police cruiser and pressed him face-first into the car. 

WATCH | Security footage shows Daniel Haworth getting punched repeatedly before he is thrown to the ground.

Security footage shows man getting punched repeatedly before he is thrown to ground

8 years ago

Duration 0:42

This graphic security footage shows what appears to be a Calgary police officer punching a man repeatedly before throwing him on the ground.

Then, the officer punched Haworth four times before swinging the handcuffed arrestee to the ground, headfirst.

Haworth suffered a brain injury and fractured skull. He died of a drug overdose months later.

Robert Haworth testified at trial that his brother was never the same after his injuries.