The cop who stole the camera is from the poorest excuse of a police service in existence. The reporter was on private property, recording police conduct. The cop didn't want his donut belly on camera, so he used the searching-for-evidence scam to try to interfere with freedom of the press.

Yup been there. Was told by a cop that if I took another picture I would be arrested. He instructed his partner to arrest me if I was observed doing so.

The fellow taking pics was Jason Payne a photographer for the Province. When he was approached by the policeman he identified himself as such. He has the legal right to take pics but the cops thought otherwise. Or unwise in this case.It is too bad when the lines between cops and criminals are getting so blurred it is hard to tell who is who.

oh wah wah wah.

Nothing funny there. The Province front-paged a do-nut dunking slob with their protographer in an armlock. Said slob was hardly gathering evidence; he didn't want his belly on camera.

We need to take away the 45 years pay for 25 years work that cop unions weaseled out of us.

All these pictures and video's are going to prevent police forces from doing real police work and the inquiries that come out of them are going to cost more than the salaries of multiple cops. They're also going to hurt recruitment 'cause who's going to want a career like that if all you do is cover your ass all the time. There are multiple risks to living in Canada, one of them might be that you get "roughed up" or maybe a little worse by the cops while they go about their business....I call that the cost of doing business. They're out there busting there humps dealing with the bottom 2% all the time. They deal with blood, sweat, tears, and other bodily fluids, and not to mention firearms, assaults, and dirty rotten repeat offenders. They should make twice as much $ and work fewer hours. Our society is backwards, Mats Sundin makes however many millions of dollars for a few hours of skating per week during 6-7 months of the year...go figure. If cops grab a camera and bust it on the ground cause they're sick of the crap that comes with it, so be it. It's the least corrupt police force on the planet by a huge margin. I've lived in Canada for many years and I've never been mistreated or even looked at funny by a police officer....hmmm....wonder why?

Somebody dies from a tazer or gets shot in the states and no-body bats an eye. In Canada everybody freaks out and wants a two month hearing over it, just to get some recommendations out of it. It's unbelievable. There certainly needs to be checks and balances for police forces but there's got to be a limit. We're going too far with all this police scrutiny now.

Well steeliepete; all of your comments might make sense save for the fact that the reporter or photographer was not aiding and abetting a criminal or impeding the police from doing their work! Police scrutiny - to bad the only ones that get to really scrutinize the police are themselves. Police are not supposed to be above the law but to enforce the law.

Well said Steeliepete. However I am happy to live in a country where checks and balances exist and we are free to question the actions of our elected officials and law enforcement without fear of reprisal.