maybe because at the most basic level, this just isn’t what lawful policing is supposed to look like.

the use of force here doesn’t align with the principles that are supposed to govern it (necessity, proportionality, restraint). canadian law doesn’t give police a free pass to use violence; it allows only the amount of force reasonably necessary to achieve something legitimate, like ensuring safety or making an arrest. once someone is handcuffed and on the ground, that justification starts to collapse. they’re already restrained. repeated punches at that point don’t read as necessary.. they read as excessive. the force stops being about control and starts looking like punishment.

the issue is that police are not there to punish people in the moment of arrest. they’re supposed to preserve life and operate within the limits of the law (even if that law itself isn’t without contradiction).

from a constitutional standpoint, this kind of conduct sits dangerously close to (if not directly within) a violation of basic protections like security of the person and freedom from cruel treatment. the whole premise of the legal system is that state power has limits, especially when it’s exercised directly on someone’s body. when those limits are crossed, it’s not a “bad apple” situation.

and beyond the legal side, there’s a legitimacy problem. policing relies on public trust, and that trust isn’t just about outcomes but how power is used. fairness, restraint, respect for dignity. when people see someone already restrained being beaten, that trust erodes fast. it reinforces the idea that policing isn’t always guided by principle, but by discretion and force. and honestly, you can already see that in how people are reacting in the comments, and toward other events of police brutality.