MONTREAL – Montreal police have asked the city to empower local officers to crack down on insult-hurling citizens – likely with a blow to their pocketbooks. Mayor Gerald Tremblay said today his public security committee is mulling the request to slap offenders with fines, a suggestion first brought forward by Montreal’s police brotherhood. The union wants Tremblay to make it illegal for members of the public to call cops profanity-laced nicknames, or to call them names like “pig” and “doughnut-eater.”
Chief-Insp. Paul Chablo, communications director for Montreal’s police force, said lawyers from the department and the city are examining the feasibility of such a rule. The 28-year veteran of the force said the law could keep police interventions involving violent citizens from getting out of hand. “There are cases where people are either intoxicated, or for other reasons extremely aggressive and very injurious,” he said. “In these cases, this tool might be something that’s practical.” But while city council digests the demand to prevent civilians from mouthing off at cops, some experts question whether punishing Montrealers for launching jeers infringes on one’s right to expression. “There are an awful lot of words that are borderline and it’s highly subjective – it’s too vague,” Ronald Sklar, a McGill University law professor, said of the police union’s proposal .
“I don’t think the police should be any different than anybody else as far as insults go because it doesn’t affect their ability to do their duty.
If they hate the name donut-eater so much, why did they get so angry when I ate the last powdered sugar donut from the Ziploc bag I keep on the passenger seat?
I would rather the citizen VENTING, then to have them SWING at me..
Similar laws exist in other cities. Yet I’m still against this law. Will write to my borough concilor.
My home town….HAHAHA
Reread the article, still laughing.
For the record, this is how we say it:
Mangeur de beigne!
Sounds more like a crock of shit from the Montreal PD.
Does anyone actually believe any self-respecting cop would ever be seen in a doughnut shop?
Cess eh-crud-ee-blah!
RBG
Why don’t they just make all insults illegal? why are cops so special?
Sounds like a first amendment issue.
Oh Canada.
Not only do they eat donuts they are Emo too. I knew there was a reason they wore black.
#9 Not only do they eat donuts they are Emo too.
So they cry and wear eyeshadow too? Cops must be different in Canada.
“Does anyone actually believe any self-respecting cop would ever be seen in a doughnut shop?”
All the time around here. The D&D usually hooks them up for free since they like having the cops around to deter robbers.
I want that patch on my motorcycle jacket SO BAD
From a self-respecting cop who has a sense of humor and has been known to eat a donut, I say get a life. Part of this job is taking sh** from people in the course of doing business. If you can’t let it roll off your back you shouldn’t be in this work. The Chief-Inspectors quote was hardly justification for the law–“There are cases where people are either intoxicated, or for other reasons extremely aggressive and very injurious,” he said. “In these cases, this tool might be something that’s practical.” If they are violent and/or intoxicated, it sounds like you have a reason to detain them at the very least.
Is there going to be a list of unacceptable words so we know what we are and aren’t allowed to call them? Or will be left to the officer’s discretion?
Should I use “sir” if I want to ask the officer a question? Of would that not show enough respect?
Maybe I should just use “your highness” or “your majesty” to be on the safe side? Or would that be considered too sarcastic?
You wouldn’t think guys and gals that carry guns would be so thin skinned. BTW, I would rather get tasered than give up some of my hard earned cash. Is that an option?
#15 Improbus has it right. If you can’t handle some drunkard mouthing off, and there is NOTHING else you can bust him on, then you need to find another line of work.
Awww the Montreal police are sooie-eet little wussies.
Maybe they really are a bunch of donut eating pigs and they should take the hint and install a gym.
Where does it end tho? If I say “that’ll do pig” after getting a ticket, Ill get fined? What about saying “Hi ham hocks” or what if I ask the cop if he too “smells bacon”?
There are sooo many words, not to mention the French versions of the words. I mean ‘pig’, ‘fat bastard’, ‘bacon’, ‘swine’, ‘scum’, ‘tit-heads’, ‘oinkers’, ……
I’ve always respected the police. After all, they’re doing a job, most of us would pay to avoid. That’s why we pay them to do it. And though they’re not making the kind of income a Pope makes (in theory). We expect them to be saints at all times. Rather than as flawed human beings, like the rest of us. They have their bad days too. And it’s the kind of nasty job that can wear anyone down. So we all need to cut them some stack.
That said, I think this penalty for words thing, is a very bad move. And ultimately useless. Language can be like quicksilver. You start banning parts of it. It will just find cracks to slip thru, to express itself. Ban “Donut-Eater”, and people will resort to saying “Lard Lad”, or “Ring Ding”, or “Dunkin”.
The need to express an insult isn’t going to go away, just because a certain phrase is banned. And people are only going to feel more oppressed that they can’t speak freely, in an otherwise free society. This sort of policy would work in China, Russia, or Japan. But not anywhere else. I think these Montreal cops ought to be glad that insults are the worst things being hurled at them. Ducking bricks is a lot worse.
CSI Canada — Bob, that corpse with 30 bullet holes in him has “Stupid Donut Eaters” carved into his skull. Should we investigate this crime, or did he commit suicide,eh?
Not possible. Doesn’t Canada has an equivalent to the 1st Amendment?
#20 it’s called freedom of expression
http://www.uottawa.ca/constitutional-law/expression.html
this won’t fly in court. Like the proposed bylaw banning mask during manifestations.
whY do they feel insulted ? they gave themselfs that name .Next time piggys dont abuse peoples rights ,you are a pig and thats it . accept IT or move on ,maybe next time you will think about getting a real job AND NOT BE HATED BY 68 PERCENT OF THE POPULATION PIGGYS…A JOB THATS considered hoNOrable ,COPS ARE NOT IN THAT HONORABE,,not montreal cops ,GOTS IT PIGGYS!YOU DISCUSTING MISERABLE SONS OF SICK ABUSIVE LOSERS OF DONUT EATING WITH SHIT ON IT OF MONTREAL COPS.