Scuffle between bouncer, photographer probed
Video on YouTube; bouncer in question suspended
Last Updated: Friday, December 4, 2009 | 11:26 PM AT
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The video of a confrontation between a Halifax bouncer and a photography student has been handed over to police.
Tyler Munford said he was visited Wednesday night by police officers investigating the weekend scuffle.
"I showed them the video and they now have the original," he said.
Munford, a student at Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University, went out with friends Saturday night to take pictures of nightlife for a school project. They ended up at the Halifax Alehouse, a popular bar on Brunswick Street.
Munford said a bouncer didn't want his picture taken and tried to cover the camera lens with his hand. Munford didn't want to upset the man so he walked away, even though he was on a public street and believed he had the right to snap away.
When the group got to the corner, the bouncer grabbed the camera from behind, said Munford.
Peter Martell, the bar manager of the Alehouse, said the bouncer in question has been suspended.
"I've counselled him to seek employment elsewhere. He's got to pay bills. He's a young guy. He's got rent. He's got to buy food," he said.
"People have been calling him a juiced up 'roid. … This is a stereotype, people should take some time to investigate this. Alex is a nice guy, a friendly five-foot-11, 160-pound security staffer.
"He's certainly not a juiced-up 'roid monkey."
Video rolling
A friend of Munford started recording the scene with a video camera. In the meantime, Munford's camera ended up in the hands of Stella Ducklow, a fellow photography student.
The footage of the scene, which has been uploaded to YouTube, shows Ducklow knocked down and held down until the bouncer finally gets the camera.
"I tried to run," said Ducklow. "I tried to wrap my arms around the camera and I was yelling at him, 'This is illegal, you can't take this.' A pedestrian wouldn't tackle you, put you on the ground, take your camera and not be charged with assault and robbery."
Munford and his friends called police. He eventually got his camera back, though most of the pictures were erased.
On Friday, Martell told CBC News he believes Munford and Ducklow purposely provoked the bouncer in an attempt to capture images of angry security people.
The Nova Scotia government intends to pass legislation requiring training for bar security staff.
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