Hamilton cop treated gun 'like a joke, like a toy, like a prop'

Hamilton police prosecutor wants officer convicted of twice mishandling gun fired

Evidence at Const. Brandon Terdik's Police Services Act hearing included cellphone video of him dancing while seated in his cruiser on July 17, 2021. In the video, Terdik drew his gun and punched it five times in the air while he danced.

A Hamilton police officer convicted for twice mishandling his service gun cannot be trusted as police officer and should be dismissed, argued the police prosecutor at the officer’s disciplinary hearing.

Const. Brandon Terdik treated his gun “like a joke, like a toy, like a prop,” Jessica Barrow said during closing submissions at Terdik’s Police Services Act hearing Wednesday. She said his offences showed a repeated disregard for his training, the “magnitude” of guns and safety.

Terdik’s lawyer, Hamilton police association counsel K.C. Wysynski, argued dismissal would be “excessively harsh” and is asking for docked pay and a two-year demotion.

Terdik pleaded guilty in July 2022 to careless use of a firearm and point firearm, and was handed a suspended sentence, 18 months of probation and a five-year weapons ban. The criminal convictions formed the basis for two charges of discreditable conduct. He pleaded guilty to the misconduct charges last March.

The rookie officer was still on probation when he and Const. Saad Tariq parked near the loading bay at St. Joseph’s West 5th Campus  in July 2021. Tariq captured Terdik on video dancing to music in his cruiser and punching his gun in the air. He did not have his finger on the trigger, but the gun was loaded and the incident was only discovered when police investigated his second offence. He was 26 at the time.

While there is no evidence anyone saw him mishandling his gun, it was a public area, Barrow said.

“It’s dangerous and scary and is not funny.”

Then October, less than a month after passing probation, he was getting ready for a patrol shift in the locker-room when he noticed something amiss with his gun and emptied it of bullets. He defied safety rules and did not use a pistol proofing station, which contains bullets should a gun fire accidentally. Hearing the metal of a gun being used in the locker-room, Terdik’s former coach officer, Chris Whyte, came over to correct the behaviour and Terdik pointed the empty gun at him, pulled the trigger and then laughed.

Barrow noted that it’s never safe to point a gun at anyone, even if you think it’s unloaded. And Whyte had no way to know it was unloaded.

“I would argue the actions are callous and that’s more concerning (than acting out of anger or inability to control emotions),” she said.

Speaking directly to the hearing officer, retired OPP superintendent Greg Walton, Terdik apologized to the police service and “most importantly” Whyte.

He noted that Whyte made him feel welcome and valued as a coach officer. He has “thought about and regretted” his actions in the locker-room every day since.

Recalling the cruiser video Terdik said his intentions were to cheer up a friend and get a laugh, but he knows there are no excuses for his actions.

Terdik said they were “isolated situations” that no not reflect how he conducts himself on calls or in uniform. He has wanted to be a police officer his entire life and asked for the chance to do any police work to prove himself again.

Terdik’s lawyer shared multiple letters, including from friends, former colleagues and his therapist, who all described his remorse about the events, good character and ability to continue as a police officer. However, Barrow noted that none of the letters came from his fellow officers.

Terdik only worked as a patrol officer for a little over a year before he was suspended amid his arrest. He has little employment history.

This hearing is not to decide Terdik’s character or whether he’s a good person – traits his friends and people who know him outside policing can attest to. Rather, it’s about determining whether his usefulness as a Hamilton police officer is spent.

Crucially, the five-year weapons prohibition would limit what jobs he could do as an officer until July 2027.

“He has demonstrated that he cannot be trusted as a police officer and cannot be trusted with his gun,” Barrow said.

The hearing continues with the conclusion of submission Thursday morning. The decision will be released at a later date.

https://www.thespec.com/news/crime/hamilton-cop-treated-gun-like-a-joke-like-a-toy-like-a-prop/article_5c2ab945-c096-53d7-b5c8-04f26e8bad09.html

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