B.C.’s police complaint commissioner has called a public hearing into two Abbotsford officers’ use of force against a homeless Indigenous man who wound up with serious injuries.

On Jan. 23, 2024, the officers, Abbotsford police constables John Leivdal and Meghan Hamel, confronted the man while he was walking with a shopping cart and carrying a large stick in an area close to homeless shelters and outreach services.

“The police officers say they stopped him for jaywalking and directed him to drop the stick,” said the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner in a statement announcing the hearing Tuesday. “They also reported that the man refused to drop the stick and heard him state the officers were going to kill him.”

The incident escalated and Leivdal pepper-sprayed the man’s face,

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