Man sentenced for attempting to disarm an officer

By Delon Shurtz - Lethbridge Herald on May 27, 2022.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDdshurtz@lethbridgeherald.com

A 24-year-old former Edmonton man tried to disarm a police officer of his pepper spray during a fight in Lethbridge a year ago.
Police had responded to a call involving a firearm, and when they arrived at the scene Braudy Solano took off running. An officer chased the suspect and caught him, but Solano resisted and they struggled on the ground, during which Solano attempted to remove the officer’s pepper spray.
Another officer arrived and helped arrest Solano, but he continued to struggle with the officers, and when they returned to the patrol car Solano spit at both officers.
Solano pleaded guilty last week in Lethbridge provincial court to a single charge of attempting to disarm a police officer and two counts of assaulting a police officer, and was sentenced to six months in jail. He also pleaded guilty to charges of mischief and assault, for which he was handed a suspended sentence and jailed another 30 days, respectively.
On July 11 of last year Solano approached a resident who was outside his residence and accused the man of owing him money. The man told Solano to get off his property and then returned to his house. Solano didn’t leave, however, and after the man went outside to order him off his property again, Solano picked up a rock and threw it into a window.
Solano left, but entered a nearby residence, where a female friend had been allowing him to reside. When police arrived in response to the mischief call relating to the previous rock throwing incident, the woman told them he was in her house and she wanted him removed. She had called police earlier in the day after she and Solano had gotten into an argument.
“She told Mr. Solano to leave, and he responded by striking her in the forehead,” Crown Prosecutor Michael Fox said.
Solano, who has a lengthy criminal record, including convictions for robbery and violence-related offences, has had little family support during his life, and has struggled with substance abuse, explained his lawyer.
Solano told Judge Michelle Christopher he plans to work and continue treatment for his addictions, then return to school.
“My first step is getting into treatment so I don’t relapse, and from here take it one day at a time with professional help,” Solano said.
Although sentenced to a total of seven months in jail, Solano was given credit for that amount of time he has already spent in custody, completing his sentence. He will also be on probation for a year, during which he is not to contact his victims or go near their residences or workplaces.

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