Charges against a Halifax woman in a high-profile case have been dropped.
Santina Rao was shopping with her children at a Walmart in the city on January 15th when she was approached by store security and police officers, accused of shoplifting.
The situation escalated into a violent altercation between Rao and police; she alleges that she was left with a concussion, a broken wrist, bruises, and lacerations during her arrest by Halifax Regional Police.
Video of the altercation circulated widely online and prompted heated reactions and debate.
Rao was never charged with shoplifting, but did face charges of assaulting an officer, resisting arrest, and causing a disturbance.
Hundreds of people reached out to Public Prosecution Services demanding that the charges be dropped.
A response in early June noted that decisions to pursue or halt prosecution cannot be based on requests from the public and the Crown does not argue cases through the media.
A press conference is slated for 9:30 Tuesday morning where Rao will speak about her ‘struggle for justice’.
Meantime, the province’s SiRT continues to investigate the circumstances of the arrest.
