An 18-year-old man is in a coma after he was shot in the head during a confrontation with officers at a courthouse in Maniwaki, Quebec, Canada.
The altercation started after the man asked for a smoke break, but was told he couldn’t have one since he’d already been sentenced and remanded to custody, the mother said.
After about another minute a gunshot is heard from the room.
Both the man and the officer were taken to a hospital. The officer has since been released.
The officer was a special constable, part of a force stationed at courthouses.
Quebec special constables’ union President Franck Perales said the video showed only one special constable at the scene. The other men in uniform may have been private security guards.
Perales said the union is pushing for more constables and criticizes the use of private security guards, who, he said, lack the training to handle similar situations.
The mother said her son was shot near his nose and the bullet was lodged in his neck.