Wow, this thread is upsetting to me. First, for what the security officer did and second for people defending his actions. Acadia, I am impressed by your actions. I would like to think that I would intervene in a similar situation.

I don't know what the laws are in Canada, however I have worked as a security officer in the United States. Here in Oregon, the man could have been charged with assault and would be spending time in prison. Security officers here are not police, they are merely representatives of the property owner and have no more authority than a private citizen. They can make a citizens arrest for crimes they have witnessed and they can defend themselves just as anyone else can, but they can't use excessive force like that. Unfortunately, most security officers have little or no training.

I would suspect that you should be able to press charges against the security officer if you want to, although as I said I don't know the laws of Canada. You should check with the police department if you want to press charges.