A pregnant mother has lost her baby after an airport confrontation over Canada's controversial app ArriveCAN..Immediately following an altercation with Peel Regional Police officers over her refusal to fill out the app, Rachel, not her real name, went into preterm labour and her baby did not survive..Police have denied Rachel's allegations and it claims body camera footage shows officers acted appropriately.."This this has been a tremendous shock. What has happened in the last couple of years and leading up till now has really saddened me, and cost the life of my child," said Rachel, who was 25-weeks pregnant before the incident..'I was yelling that I needed to go, to stay away from me, and that I was pregnant'.On August 15, Rachel and her husband Jerry were returning to Canada from trip to the United Kingdom. They claimed to have encountered "no issues" during their travels until they arrived at Toronto Pearson International Airport..The couple were told they needed to speak with a Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officer. When they were asked about filling out the ArriveCAN app, Jerry said, "we're not doing that.".While Jerry had filled out ArriveCAN for a trip a few months earlier, Rachel told the Western Standard she refused to do the same because, "my rights as a Canadian are such that the passport I carry is supposed to allow me passage, without delay, into my country.".Rachel and her husband repeatedly refused the officer's help with filling out ArriveCAN, and Rachel also declined to give her passport. Rachel was told that if she didn't cooperate and give her information, she could be arrested..Rachel said she tried to leave the area, but was blocked by four Peel Regional police officers. One of them told her, 'If you don't want to give [the CBSA officer] your information, you can give it to me. It is required for public health.'".This turned into a heated 10-minute argument between Rachel and the police officers.."My voice had become elevated and I was yelling that I needed to go, to stay away from me, and that I was pregnant," Rachel said. "I had my hands up to show that I wasn't a threat.".Rachel was then told that she would arrested. As the officers began advancing towards Rachel, she read off the first page of her passport..It claims that the bearer is allowed to "pass freely, without delay or hindrance, and to afford the bearer such assistance and protection as it may be necessary." But Rachel said one officer kept telling telling her, "that doesn't matter, that was before COVID.".As Rachel was walking backwards, she bumped into a barrier and fell onto her back. The four officers then began attempting to restrain her and grab her passport.."I was kicking and punching and trying to get them off of me. Someone grabbed my hand and cut me in the process of doing so," she said..Eventually one of the CBSA officers began yelling at the police officers that it "wasn't worth it" and they eventually backed off. Rachel and Jerry were then allowed to leave the airport without any arrests or fines, and weren't required to give anyone their information..'It caused him to go into septic shock, and he never recovered'.When the couple got back home to Thornhill, Rachel she noticed she was bleeding. They went to North York General Hospital to check on the baby, and Rachel said she was told by doctors she was going into preterm labour as a result of the incident..The baby was delivered through a C-section days later, and was being kept for observation at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto. But soon after, the baby developed necrotizing enterocolitis, a serious gastrointestinal problem that typically impacts premature babies.."They transferred him to the emergency room by ambulance on his last day of life to perform a life-saving procedure, which resulted in the removal of the gas that was in his bowels. But it caused him to go into septic shock, and he never recovered," Rachel said..The couple buried their child on September 5. The couple said they have spoken to a lawyer and reached out to the Peel Regional police to formally lodge a complaint..A spokesperson from Peel Regional Police told the Western Standard they were made aware of the allegation and notified its Special Investigations Unit, which decided not to invoke its mandate.."Upon reviewing body-worn camera footage of the incident, it was determined the allegations made by the complainant were not substantiated and the officers acted with professionalism and patience in conducting their legal duties," they said.."As a result it was concluded there was no misconduct on the part of the involved officers.".Rachel said ArriveCAN made sense when it was a voluntary app at the beginning of the pandemic.."People were asked to voluntarily participate in this divulging of their information, and they willingly did because they felt that this was the right thing to do," she said..But as COVID-19 began to wind down, the federal government ramped the app up and it "became something else," according to Rachel.."ArriveCAN is not about protection. So it begs the question, what are they doing it for?".Rachel and Jerry said they never want "anyone else to have to go through this again."."This is not about winning a lawsuit for us. This is about ending something that should have ended and months and months ago," she said. "No one should ever have to lose a child over something that has nothing to do with welfare or health.".On Monday, it was reported the federal government will be making the use of ArriveCAN optional as of September 30.
