Leveesa Lessey says she was threatened with arrest and a criminal charge by the Montreal police officer who arrived at Clinique dentaire Ville-Marie.

A woman has filed a complaint with the Montreal police ethics committee after she says she was threatened with arrest and a criminal charge over a disagreement concerning dental fees.

“I felt that being a single mother on social assistance was a factor in how I was treated,” said Leveesa Lessey. “If I were white, it would have a different outcome.”

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In February, Lessey visited Clinique dentaire Ville-Marie in Centre-Sud so a dentist could perform a fillings procedure on her three-year-old son. Lessey thought she agreed to amalgam fillings, which are typically covered for young children under the public health insurance plan. However, after the procedure, the dentist informed her that he used composite fillings, which are not covered by the plan. He then asked Lessey to pay $198, an amount she deemed “substantial” for a single mother of two on welfare.

“I offered to pay half the fee, because I just felt like it was a misunderstanding on both our parts,” she said.

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But what started as a misunderstanding over the fees escalated when the dentist opted to call police for “theft of services” after she refused to pay the full amount. According to Lessey, the SPVM officer who arrived at the clinic threatened to arrest her if she did not pay the full amount.

“It made me feel like I was taken advantage of and there was nothing I could do about it,” she said.

Fearing arrest, Lessey paid the full fee, but was subsequently banned from returning to the dental clinic.

“I felt so small when I walked out of there that day,” she said.

Following the incident, Lessey approached the Center for Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR), whose mandate is to combat racism in Canada. According to Fo Niemi, the executive director of CRARR, the police officer displayed ignorance of the law by threatening to arrest Lessey for “theft of services,” a criminal offence that exists in the United States but not in Canada.

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“The dentist said she was committing ‘theft of services,’ and the police officer just ran with it, without realizing that no such criminal offence exists here,” he said.

Niemi helped Lessey file complaints with the police ethics committee and the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse. He says the case represents a form of racial profiling

“We need to remain vigilant about the criminalization of poverty and the disturbing trend of private citizens calling the police on black people for everything and anything,” he said.

Lessey says she is not filing these complaints for financial compensation. Rather, she says, she wants to encourage people who feel discriminated against to come forward with their experiences.

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“I want people to know they can speak up if they’re going through something,” she said. “To other women of colour who are single mothers, know that you have a voice. Use it.”

Clinique dentaire Ville-Marie declined to comment on the incident when contacted by the Montreal Gazette, on the basis of patient confidentiality.