Black Montreal church leader says police ‘humiliated’ her during interaction over car window tint

A Black woman says she was left shaken and humiliated after being stopped by police in Montreal and allegedly asked to remove the tint on her car window using a coin.

Charlene Hunte, a grandmother and Union United Church leader, said she was pulled over by Montreal police last month because her car window was deemed to be too dark.

She explained that one police officer treated her in a patronizing and paternalistic manner, threatening to tow her vehicle and fine her if she did not remove the tint on her car window on the spot using a quarter.

“He came and says, ‘do you have 25 cents?'” Hunte recalled. “I says, ‘no, I don’t have 25 cents.’ So I says, ‘what does it have to do with me, with my tint? Just give me a 24-hour citation.’ ‘No, I’m gonna tow your car. If you don’t comply now.’

“I was told there and then I have to do it right there and then. And the intimidation was his power.”

She says she eventually removed the tint on one of the windows with a knife handed to her by a police officer.

“It (sank in) the next day that an officer handed me his knife to scrape off a tint,” Hunte said. “What happens if somebody saw me and thought something different? That I had a knife at the officers. Everything could have gone totally wrong.”

Hunte said it was “one of the most humiliating experiences” of her life, and she wonders what could have happened if she were a Black man. She added the incident happened not far from her church, and that a total of three police cars converged on the scene.

“This whole operation from the moment that they ordered her to take off the tint, usually you get a fine and then you’re given 24 hours to bring it to the garage to remove the tint but to force it to do it right there. It’s, shall we say, unusual and a little bit draconian,” said CRARR executive director Fo Niemi.

The SPVM tells CityNews it does not comment on specific cases “in order to prevent any influence on a possible judicial, ethical or disciplinary process.”

Anyone feeling wronged during an interaction with police can file a complaint with the SPVM or an independent organization, the SPVM spokesperson said.

“That said, we do not tolerate any disrespect, misconduct, harassment or criminal acts by any member of our staff,” they added. “We invite any victim or witness of such behavior to report it to us. Any complaints or allegations are taken seriously and given immediate attention.

“Furthermore, the law prevents us from commenting on situations related to employee personal files or actions taken by our Professional Standards Division. This information is strictly confidential.”

Hunte will now work with CRARR to file a complaint with the Quebec Human Rights and Youth Rights Commission and the police ethics commissioner.

“It could happen to anybody,” Hunte said. “And I’m upset because if I had my granddaughter and she was just to say, ‘let me use your car grandma.’ And they stopped her. Anything could happen. We don’t know.”