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Saskatchewan RCMP officer who punched teen suspect given conditional discharge

Cpl. Dean Flaman pleaded guilty to assault for punching and choking a teenager who was being handcuffed during a vehicle theft call in Warman.

Crown prosecutor Bill Burge argued that Flaman should not get a discharge because he abused his position of trust.

But defence lawyer Brad Mitchell said Flaman had responded to a fatal crash and a teen suicide in the days and hours before the assault and was stressed and overreacted.

The judge ruled Flaman is not a threat to the public and registering a conviction is not required.

He ordered Flaman to the maximum of 250 hours of community service and to apologize to the teen.

Mitchell said Flaman is a good police officer who had a bad couple of days.

“It’s pretty clear from the letters of support and from the facts of the case that this was an isolated incident.”

Burge said the Crown was opposed to a discharge because of his position of trust.

“Corporal Flaman came to court with a good reputation and he had support from the community which was evidenced by the letters of support that were provided to the court, so obviously there’s a balancing function that the court had to do here.”

News from © Canadian Press Enterprises Inc. 2017