MONTREAL – Montreal police have asked the city to empower local officers to crack down on insult-hurling citizens – likely with a blow to their pocketbooks. Mayor Gerald Tremblay said today his public security committee is mulling the request to slap offenders with fines, a suggestion first brought forward by Montreal’s police brotherhood. The union wants Tremblay to make it illegal for members of the public to call cops profanity-laced nicknames, or to call them names like “pig” and “doughnut-eater.”

Chief-Insp. Paul Chablo, communications director for Montreal’s police force, said lawyers from the department and the city are examining the feasibility of such a rule. The 28-year veteran of the force said the law could keep police interventions involving violent citizens from getting out of hand. “There are cases where people are either intoxicated, or for other reasons extremely aggressive and very injurious,” he said. “In these cases, this tool might be something that’s practical.” But while city council digests the demand to prevent civilians from mouthing off at cops, some experts question whether punishing Montrealers for launching jeers infringes on one’s right to expression. “There are an awful lot of words that are borderline and it’s highly subjective – it’s too vague,” Ronald Sklar, a McGill University law professor, said of the police union’s proposal .

“I don’t think the police should be any different than anybody else as far as insults go because it doesn’t affect their ability to do their duty.

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