A journalist has been ordered to complete community service work and give a $250 donation after he was arrested at the scene of a fatal collision in Hamilton earlier this year.
Hamilton police released the outcome of their case against Freelance videographer David Ritchie on Tuesday.
Officers were called to a crash site in the area of Evans Rd. and Highway 5 in Waterdown around 8 p.m. on May 16, after a 10-year-old girl was fatally struck by a van near her home.
Ritchie was also on scene recording video of the collision scene.
In a news release issued on Tuesday, Hamilton police said one of their officers directed Ritchie to leave the scene as he was recording footage but he refused.
At one point, for reasons police did not specify, Ritchie’s video camera was taken from him and stored in the officer’s cruiser. Ritchie asked the officer that his equipment be returned.
The journalist was subsequently charged.
Hamilton police said Tuesday that Ritchie has accepted responsibility for obstructing a peace officer and will have to complete 12.5 hours of community service and make a donation of $250.
Ritchie said both the community service and donation have been completed.
As well, Ritchie must respect the Peace Bond put in place.
“The Peace Bond is in effect for 12 months and Ritchie must keep the peace and be of good behaviour,” the news release said.
Hamilton police said that although the Crown felt there was enough evidence to pursue a case against Ritchie, they were willing to drop the case after Ritchie agreed to the peace bond and community service.
Global News cameraman Jeremy Cohn was also detained at the scene but was released unconditionally after being held for an hour and a half.
Back in May, the executive director of Canadian Journalists for Freedom of Expression Tom Henheffer had harsh words for the treatment of the two journalists by Hamilton police, saying the service has a “reputation” for its treatment of the media.
“This is something that Hamilton police is known for,” he said. “(Ritchie) was just there to cover this, to let people know what happened in this tragedy.”
