|
Tom
Engel | Abdulahi Mahamad
| Mayor also targetted in
bar sting | More
on Police cheif's troubles | Diotte's
column in response to this | Tasering
Randy Fryingpan | Excerpts
from the tapes | Post-Rayner
stories | Edmonton police
on U.S. State Department Bad Cop list for violating human rights
| 2005: Inquiries
| Chief Da Costa responds
to racist e-mail inside force
Police chief axed
By KATE DUBINSKI, EDMONTON
SUN, Feb. 9, 2005
The Edmonton Police Commission
last night terminated the contract of police Chief Fred Rayner,
a day after he told them he's leaving the post on an indefinite
period of sick leave. "The police commission, and each of
its members, cares deeply about our police service and all of
its members. The commission takes very seriously its role to
ensure that there is a high level of confidence in the police
service and its members. Therefore ... the Edmonton Police Commission,
at a duly constituted meeting, terminated Fred Rayner's contract
effective 7 p.m. (last night)," commission chairman Martin
Ignasiak told reporters after a three-hour meeting.
The commission voted to appoint
a new chief, but didn't reveal its selection. Council will have
to approve a buyout deal for Rayner and ratify the appointment
of the new chief.
Insiders say Dave Cassels,
who applied for the top job and lost out to Rayner, is expected
to be appointed chief.
A former Edmonton deputy chief,
Cassels currently lives in Kelowna, B.C., where he does RCMP
work for the city.
He was Winnipeg's police chief
from 1996 to 1998 .
Details regarding the "financial
implications" of the termination will be made public when
they're finalized, Ignasiak said.
Rayner signed a three-year
contract in May with the option to renew - a deal worth $199,000
a year. That's more than his predecessor, Bob Wasylyshen, earned
under his $170,000-a-year contract.
Darryl da Costa, appointed
interim police chief Monday, will continue in the position until
the new chief is appointed.
An emergency meeting of city
council will be called for today or tomorrow to ratify the new
appointment.
Nine councillors have to be
present for the meeting to take place, said Coun. Jane Batty,
who sits on the commission.
"Conceivably it could
be as late as Thursday morning before we are able to hold the
special council meeting, but certainly we will try to facilitate
this as soon as possible," she said.
Rayner, through his lawyer
on Monday night, told commission members he was taking sick leave.
His announcement came just half an hour before the commission
was scheduled to discuss how the chief has handled a controversial
police investigation that has sparked calls for a public inquiry.
Rayner has been criticized
since last week, when he presented a report that cleared seven
officers of targeting Ignasiak and Sun columnist Kerry Diotte
in a drunk-driving sting operation for allegedly political reasons.
Ignasiak said last night he
didn't participate in the discussions about Rayner and the appointment
of the new chief.
Two officers face Police Act
charges related to the November investigation at the downtown
Overtime Broiler and Tap Room, 10304 111 St.
"It had to be done given
the severity of this evidence that has come out regarding the
sting," Diotte said about Rayner's termination.
"Any reasonable person
who has seen, read or heard the tapes would come to that conclusion.
The chief, sadly, just had to go. It's kind of hard when anybody
loses their job, but the bigger issue has to be addressed."
Traffic supervisor Staff Sgt.
Bill Newton is charged with discreditable conduct and insubordination
regarding his handling of information that led to police interest
in Diotte.
Insp. Bryan Boulanger faces
a charge of discreditable conduct related to a news release issued
after the fact. Another officer is under investigation for making
what Rayner called "rude" and "vulgar" comments
on the police radio.
On Monday, the police commission
expressed concerns that seven officers involved in the operation
were cleared of wrongdoing.
- Edmonton chief takes
leave
Top cop under fire after releasing report on police sting operation
Canadian Press, February 8, 2005
EDMONTON (CP) -- Edmonton's
police chief, who has been under fire for a police sting operation
roundly condemned as unethical and unconscionable, went on indefinite
medical leave Monday.
"The Edmonton Police Commission
was just notified through counsel for Police Chief Fred Rayner
that effective immediately he is on a medical leave of absence
and deputy chief Darryl da Costa has been appointed acting chief,"
police commission chair Martin Ignasiak told reporters.
The medical condition was not
disclosed. Rayner could not be reached immediately for comment.
The chief touched off controversy
last Thursday when he released a report into a Nov. 18 police
stakeout at a downtown bar.
There have been accusations
newspaper columnist Kerry Diotte and Ignasiak were targeted by
police that night because they had been critics of the police.
Rayner, however, said the stakeout
was launched on an anonymous tip that Diotte might be planning
to drink and drive. It was coincidence, said Rayner, that Ignasiak
was at the same location.
He announced disciplinary hearings
would be held into the actions of two senior officers and said
another officer was being investigated for allegedly using inappropriate
language on the police radio.
The story unravelled a day
later, when police were forced to admit that Ignasiak was indeed
targeted and had even been given the designation T2 for Target
2 by officers on the stakeout. Diotte was T1.
More outrage followed over
the weekend, when police radio transcripts from that night, which
Rayner had refused to make public until the disciplinary proceedings,
were published by The Edmonton Journal.
On the transcripts, officers
are heard trying to tailor the sting operation to avoid having
to later admit they had spotter officers in the bar. They joke
about the anonymous tip that launched the stakeout. They mock
Diotte's column, clothes and physical appearance and talk of
previous surveillance on his house. They target Ignasiak but
give up when he hails a cab, telling each other they "gave
it the good old college try."
Earlier Monday, Alberta Solicitor
General Harvey Cenaiko said he was considering calling a public
inquiry into the affair under the Police Act.
He called the behaviour of
police on the stakeout "extremely, extremely inappropriate."
Cenaiko, a former Calgary police
officer, said it was obvious from reading the transcript that
the two police critics were targeted.
"It's very upsetting,"
he said. "What happens is that it places a black mark on
the whole Edmonton Police Service and it shouldn't.
"There are a number of
officers there that have done something that is totally irresponsible,
totally wrong."
Police commission spokesperson
John Brosseau said the officers on tape tarnished the reputations
of other good officers on the force.
"It is the view of the
commission that the behavior of the officers was despicable,
and just totally unacceptable for police officers to operate
that way," Brosseau said following the announcement of Rayner's
medical leave.
Ron Hayter, a veteran city
councillor, said his confidence in Rayner was shaken.
"This is absolutely unacceptable
in our society," said Hayter. "If we allow this kind
of thing to happen without taking very strong measures against
everybody involved, then we've got to fear for our freedom."
Diotte and Ignasiak were attending
a Canadian Association of Journalists event at a downtown bar
when they came under the surveillance of seven officers. Both
took cabs home but denied being intoxicated.
Chris Braiden, a former Edmonton
police superintendent, joined opposition critics and defence
lawyers in the call for a public inquiry.
He said the seven-officer sting
was far from the routine operation Rayner suggested it was.
The responsible answer to a
tip that someone was planning to drink and drive would be for
one officer to go to the bar and warn him not to do it, Braiden
said.
Six of the seven officers involved
in the stakeout escaped censure by Rayner because they were following
orders. But Braiden said officers have a responsibility to refuse
unethical orders.
Cenaiko said he will introduce
legislation this spring to provide additional civilian oversight
of police activities.
Rayner, a 25-year veteran of
the Edmonton police and deputy chief since 1997, is in his first
year in the top job.
He beat out former Winnipeg
chief David Cassels for the $199,000 a year job last year.
© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2005
Chief books off
Fred Rayner takes sick leave in wake of Overtime sting
By ANDREA SANDS, EDMONTON
SUN, Feb. 8, 2005
Police Chief Fred Rayner told
his Edmonton Police Commission bosses through a lawyer yesterday
that he's leaving the chief's office on an indefinite period
of sick leave. The surprise announcement came just half an hour
before commission members were scheduled to discuss how the chief
handled a controversial police investigation that has sparked
calls for a public inquiry.
"All I can say is I was
totally surprised by what happened today," said commission
member John Brosseau.
Commission chairman Martin
Ignasiak noted Rayner's indefinite sick-leave time is still restricted
by the terms of his contract.
"That contract may be
terminated if leave extends beyond three months," he said.
Rayner's announcement fuelled
speculation that the sick leave might protect Rayner's job, at
least for awhile.
Rayner has been hotly criticized
since last week, when he presented a report that cleared seven
officers of targeting Ignasiak and Sun columnist Kerry Diotte
in a drunk-driving operation for allegedly political reasons.
Two officers face Police Act
charges related to the November investigation at the downtown
Overtime Broiler and Tap Room, 10304 111 St.
Traffic supervisor Staff Sgt.
Bill Newton is charged with discreditable conduct and insubordination
regarding his handling of information that led to police interest
in Diotte.
Insp. Bryan Boulanger faces
a charge of discreditable conduct related to a news release issued
after the fact. Another officer is under investigation for making
what Rayner called "rude" and "vulgar" comments
on the police radio.
Yesterday, the police commission
expressed concerns that seven officers involved in the operation
were cleared of wrongdoing.
Transcripts of police conversations
- in which cops discuss going to Diotte's house and searching
for him at other bars - are "very damning," said Brosseau.
One provincial politician,
who didn't want his name used, wondered aloud who is urging Rayner
to take sick leave.
"Is it his doctor's advice
or his lawyer's advice?"
The president of the Alberta
Union of Provincial Employees, the province's largest union,
told the Sun that it's "extremely rare" - though likely
not illegal - for an employer to discipline an employee on medical
leave.
"They don't usually discipline
or terminate people when they're on sick leave," said Dan
MacLennan.
Diotte said he can understand
why Rayner might need time off. "It's been difficult for
a lot of people," he said. "I can sympathize. Everybody
wants to see this resolved quickly."
Former police chief John Lindsay
went on sick leave in May 1999, shortly after two detectives
filed complaints with the commission alleging elements in the
police service were involved in coverups of criminal actions
and the leak of a confidential source's identity.
Lindsay called the timing of
his leave "coincidental," and said he was taking time
off after his doctor discovered he had an irregular heartbeat
during a routine checkup.
Lindsay later resigned in January
2000 amidst allegations of corruption on the police force, though
he was cleared by an eight-month RCMP probe.
Deputy chief Darryl da Costa
has been appointed acting chief while Rayner is away, said Ignasiak.
The commission intends to seek
more information from the chief about why he is taking medical
leave, but it is a personnel issue that raises some privacy issues,
Ignasiak added.
Chief
sorry for stakeout
Officers heard
on tape discussing how to avoid disclosing witnesses in an arrest
of police commission chair or Sun journalist
Charles Rusnell and Karen
Kleiss, The Edmonton Journal, February 6, 2005
Edmonton police officers discussed
ways to avoid disclosing some information that could potentially
weaken their case if they caught the newspaper columnist or police
commission chairman they had targeted in a drunk-driving operation,
according to a tape of police radio transmissions obtained by
The Journal.
Some of the police officers
also joked about the authenticity of an "anonymous"
tip that police say justified the more than three-hour stakeout
of a downtown bar.
During the operation, some
officers made numerous crude, disparaging remarks about Edmonton
Sun columnist Kerry Diotte, on whose home the tape shows they
had previously conducted surveillance.
Diotte was shaken by the transcript,
which includes a description of his house.
"That is creepy, so creepy."
The tape also reveals that
even after Edmonton Police Commission chairman Martin Ignasiak
left the bar in a taxi, police officers in unmarked cars unsuccessfully
attempted to follow the taxi in the faint hope that he might
drive.
"I think it is absolutely
shocking in a country where the police are under civilian control,"
said University of Alberta law professor James Stribopoulos,
who was read a transcript of the tape. "It's the kind of
behaviour you would expect elsewhere; not in a constitutional
democracy like Canada where the police in theory are supposed
to be subject to civilian oversight."
Chief Fred Rayner has insisted
that Diotte, while a critic of the police service, was targeted
not because of who he was or what he wrote, but because officers
believed they had received a legitimate tip he might drink and
drive. Rayner also said the operation, known as Targeting All
Drunk Drivers or TADD, was routine.
After hearing portions of a
transcript of the tape, which included a description of the front
of his home, Diotte dismissed Rayner's contention that it was
a routine operation.
"Given what I heard, it
is very difficult to believe that it is not connected to what
I have written in the past, and I think most reasonable people,
hearing that tape, would most likely come to the same conclusion,"
Diotte said Saturday.
Ignasiak declined comment,
as did commission spokesman John Brosseau.
Rayner, in a press release
issued late Saturday, said that "it is clear by the actions
I've taken that I strongly disagree with the language and conversation
on these tapes."
But Rayner continued to insist
the officers were at the bar because of "source information"
and he said they also received a second tip that same night about
Diotte. Still, he said "there is no question that the eagerness
these officers demonstrated at the prospect of charging him with
impaired driving was clearly inappropriate." But he said
a review of the investigation by Calgary's deputy police chief,
who reviewed Edmonton's internal investigation, concluded "it
did not affect their monitoring of Mr. Diotte."
In his release, Rayner personally
apologizes for the first time publicly to Diotte and Ignasiak,
acknowledging that the incident has been extremely difficult
for them.
And, also for the first time,
the chief acknowledges that the behaviour of his officers may
have been linked to the criticism of the force voiced by both
Ignasiak and Diotte.
"All police officers must
be able to take criticism from the media, from individuals, from
any source, and not have it affect their judgments or actions
-- and I intend to strongly reinforce this absolute principle
all across the service."
On Nov. 18, 2004, seven city
police officers staked out a downtown bar for more than four
hours during an informal gathering sponsored by the local chapter
of the Canadian Association of Journalists, of which Diotte is
president. Ignasiak attended because he is active in the local
Liberal party.
The police stakeout came to
light because a Sun newspaper reporter monitoring a police scanner
on that evening heard comments relating to Diotte. Rayner subsequently
ordered an internal investigation, despite calls from the Criminal
Trial Lawyers' Association and others that an outside force be
called in.
On Feb. 3, Rayner released
a summary of the internal investigation, which concluded the
officers had conducted a routine drunk-driving operation and
had not used police authority inappropriately. One senior Edmonton
police officer, Staff Sgt. Bill Newton, head of the traffic unit,
faces a disciplinary hearing for how he directed the investigation
against Diotte. A second senior officer, Insp. Bryan Boulanger,
Rayner's executive assistant, also faces a disciplinary hearing
for issuing a press release that, without naming Diotte or Ignasiak,
gave some people the impression they were drunk and might drive.
From the tapes, it can be determined
that the officers waiting outside the bar had people inside the
bar who were providing them with specific, detailed information
about the actions of both Diotte and Ignasiak. It's also obvious
that the police officers are keen to catch either or both of
the men and don't want to do anything that might jeopardize their
bust.
At one point, the officers
discuss the possibility of making any CheckStop look like a routine
part of their duties without using their witnesses inside the
bar.
"We're trying to get in
place and make the observation ourself of someone leaving the
bar," one officer says.
"Whatever the ones being
targeted and then we don't have to use them as witnesses. We
could do that here and we wouldn't have to use you guys as witnesses
-- just seen a car leaving the bar, pulled him over as part of
our TADD duties, and lo and behold."
At another point on the tape
they discuss whether to run Ignasiak's name through the police
computer information system in order to find out whether his
car is parked near the bar.
"I don't know if that's
maybe the right thing to do right now, but do we want anything
on the system?" one officer asks.
"Well, I know it can cause
a problem," another officer responds, and they decide to
depend on their "eyes" inside the bar.
Stribopoulos was shocked to
hear this conversation between police officers.
"If charges arose out
of this investigation, constitutionally the police would be obligated
to disclose all relevant information," he said.
"If someone were to come
to an agreement to deliberately refrain from disclosing the true
circumstances by which an investigation was undertaken and suspects
arrested, the individuals party to such an agreement could potentially,
depending on the circumstances, be guilty of conspiracy to obstruct
justice."
At the end of the night, both
Diotte and Ignasiak took cabs, but the police were undaunted.
"Oh well, we gave it the
good old college try," one officer said.
"Well, I think we'll be
able to tag T1 (Diotte) on another day, another time," another
officer replies.
But for future reference, one
officer decides to drive by Diotte's house.
"I want to eyeball it.
Somehow it makes it easier to keep on eye on somebody when you
have that familiarity."
Another officer is helpful:
"You can't miss it. It's got two pillars in front of his
driveway with lions on them."
Diotte said that after hearing
the transcript, there needs to be a new investigation.
"Looking back about what
I have written about cops, most of it has been pretty light.
It wasn't like raving, off-the-wall rants and even if it had
been, I don't think I would have deserved this kind of attention.
It blows me away that it would inspire such apparent animosity
and surveillance.
"That is very creepy and
it's wrong in a democratic society; everybody knows that."
Rayner said the tapes would
be publicly released through the disciplinary hearings he has
ordered. He said those hearings would be held within eight weeks.
crusnell@thejournal.canwest.com
© The Edmonton Journal 2005
The columnist's sting, the police stung
By KATHERINE HARDING,
Globe and Mail, Feb 7, 2005
Edmonton - It's a scandal ripped
from the tabloid headlines - a veteran newspaper columnist who
takes on the police force finds himself under surveillance, the
victim of a sting operation that even ensnarled the police commission
chair.
Since November, Edmonton has
been abuzz with the case of Kerry Diotte, the Sun columnist who
angered police by writing about what he said was their propensity
for high-speed chases.
Edmonton police hoped to catch
him driving while impaired one night, only to apparently be foiled
when he took a cab home from a social event attended by dozens
of journalists and local politicians.
The headlines took another
dramatic turn yesterday, when transcripts of police radio transmissions
emerged revealing officers saying they would just have to bag
their "target" on "another day, another time."
Police have said all along
it wasn't a sting - just a tip they dutifully acted on. And their
chief backed the statement, even though he recently expressed
doubt about the quality of the tip that led police to the bar
in the first place.
"We were interested in
[Mr. Diotte] because of his behaviour, and not necessarily because
of who he was or what he might have said in the newspaper,"
Chief Fred Rayner told reporters last week.
On yesterday's reported transcripts
of police radio transmissions, officers were joking about the
tip and their "target."
"I think the guy who gets
this target will never have to pay for a drink as long as he
lives," one unidentified officer reportedly said.
The transcripts of the tapes
also revealed that the officers knew where Mr. Diotte lived,
with one describing his house. They are also heard joking about
his columns and accusing him of stealing them off the Internet.
"You know what - I'd do his job and I'd do it better than
him. A fucking idiot can write that up in about five minutes,"
one officer reportedly said.
After Mr. Diotte, who does
not have a criminal record, was spotted by plainclothes officers
leaving the bar in a cab, one officer remarked: "Oh well,
we gave it the good old college try."
Another officer replied: "Well,
I think we will be able to tag [Mr. Diotte] on another day, another
time."
Mr. Diotte, who has been a
journalist for 25 years, said yesterday: "From what I heard
on the tapes . . . it was far more serious than [Chief Rayner]
led people to believe. It's pretty easy to judge that."
Mr. Diotte alleges he was targeted
because of past columns criticizing police tactics, and wants
the case to be reviewed by an independent body. "That tape
tends to indicate they have been looking for me for a while.
They still may be," he said. "That's creepy; that's
wrong. That shouldn't happen in a democratic country."
The police sting first came
to light when a newspaper reporter listening to a police radio
on Nov. 18 heard officers talking about the popular columnist.
Mr. Diotte also wants Chief
Rayner to immediately release the extensive internal investigation
conducted into the stakeout, including the police transmissions.
Chief Rayner was not available
to comment yesterday. However, in a news release written Saturday,
he acknowledged the incident has been "extremely difficult"
for both Mr. Diotte and Martin Ignasiak, the chair of the police
commission.
(While the chief denied last
week that Mr. Ignasiak was also targeted during the sting, it
was revealed on Friday by police officials that officers were
after him, too, on Nov. 18, and even assigned him a codename,
T2, which stood for Target Two.)
- Ignasiak was 'T2'
Cops acknowledge commission chairman was a target
By DAN PALMER, EDMONTON
SUN, February 5, 2005
City police commission chairman
Martin Ignasiak was designated a target during a November drunk-driving
operation that's resulted in disciplinary charges against two
senior officers, police acknowledged yesterday. "At the
point where he was leaving the bar, he did become a target, just
as everyone else who had been drinking became a target as they
left the bar if police didn't know how they were going home,"
said police spokesman Chris McLeod.
But McLeod emphasized that
Ignasiak was not the focus of the drunk-driving operation that
placed two plainclothes officers inside the Overtime Broiler
and Tap Room, 10304 111 St., to watch patrons.
"Kerry
Diotte was the focus of the investigation. Martin Ignasiak
was not," McLeod said.
Police Chief Fred Rayner on
Thursday released some findings of an investigation into the
police handling a Nov. 18 drunk-driving operation in the downtown
area.
Rayner said traffic cops received
"source information" from a supervisor at the start
of their shift that Edmonton Sun columnist Diotte was a risk
to drive after drinking.
He wouldn't clarify what the
"source information" was.
Police then spotted Diotte's
car at the Overtime and sent plainclothes cops inside where they
verified Diotte's presence there and noticed Ignasiak, police
said.
Diotte got a "Target 1"
or a T1 designation as soon he was spotted.
But Ignasiak wasn't given his
T2 tag until police believed he was leaving and didn't know how
he was getting home. He lost the designation after leaving in
a cab, McLeod said.
McLeod said police also got
a tip later that night after cops arrived at the Overtime that
Diotte was a risk to drive.
There was at least another
"potential" dozen targets at the Overtime that night
that cops identified by descriptions, McLeod said. "The
only thing that stopped them from getting a T designation was
the police didn't know their names, so they didn't worry about
protecting their identities."
McLeod said Diotte and Ignasiak
were identified as T1 and T2, so cops didn't reveal their identities
over the radio.
"They know that they were
being monitored, so they can't say peoples names over the radio.
That would be a violation of their privacy."
There was a potential for a
T3 that night until police realized that person had a designated
driver, McLeod added.
Edmonton Police Commission
acting executive director John Acheson said yesterday "if
the police have said ... Ignasiak was targeted, that obviously
would be a concern to the commission."
Acheson declined further comment
until the commission reviews the roughly 500-page report about
the investigation they received yesterday morning.
Tom Engel, chairman of the
Criminal Trial Lawyers' Association's policing committee, said
he still believes Ignasiak was designated a target because he
has criticized police.
"Why else would he be
a target? There is no reasonable explanation," Engel said.
Two police officers are facing
Police Act charges as a result of the investigation into the
Overtime stakeout. Traffic supervisor, Staff Sgt. Bill Newton,
is charged with discreditable conduct and insubordination regarding
his handling of information about Diotte. Insp. Bryan Boulanger
faces a charge of discreditable conduct related to a news release
issued after the fact.
Diotte has said the full probe
report should be made public.
"I'm very upset that the
police chief has once again indicated that somehow I'm a risk
to drink and drive," he added.
- "I have never been charged
with drinking and driving. If I have a couple of drinks in a
bar, I take a taxi."
-
- Cops hand over case
Outside police will decide officers' fate
By DAN PALMER, EDMONTON
SUN, Feb. 5, 2005
The fate of a pair of senior
city cops will be decided by officers from outside the Edmonton
Police Service when they face disciplinary hearings, say city
police. "The presiding officer will not be an EPS member,"
city police spokesman Chris McLeod said yesterday, adding that
officer will come from another police agency such as the Calgary
police or the RCMP.
"(That's) because of transparency,
because of wanting to ensure there's no bias. Also, because the
investigation was reviewed by an outside service, it just makes
sense to keep it outside to preserve the public trust in the
process."
Calgary police reviewed a pair
of Edmonton Police Service investigations into a drunk-driving
operation on Nov. 18 near the Overtime Broiler and Taproom, 10304
111 St.
One investigation was into
the cops' handling of a drunk-driving operation at Overtime that
night, which stemmed from allegations Edmonton Sun columnist
Kerry Diotte and police chairman Martin Ignasiak were targets
of a police sting operation. The other probe studied a press
release issued a few days later.
Police Chief Fred Rayner has
said he has "concerns" about traffic supervisor Staff
Sgt. Bill Newton's treatment of information that led to police
interest in Diotte.
Newton is facing a Police Act
charge of discreditable conduct and a charge of insubordination
related to "inappropriate access to the police information
system," Rayner said.
Insp. Bryan Boulanger will
proceed to a disciplinary hearing regarding a Nov. 21 news release
and whether its "content was appropriate or not," Rayner
has said.
McLeod said dates for those
hearings will be set once arrangements are made with another
police agency.
Four police officers and a
civilian received official warnings for allegedly using police
systems to search for information about Diotte and Ignasiak before
the Overtime events.
The Criminal Trial Lawyers'
Association filed a complaint yesterday with the Law Enforcement
Review Board saying it doesn't agree with how Rayner handled
disciplinary actions against the officers.
"Where he did decide to
discipline, the penalty wasn't harsh enough," said Tom Engel,
chairman of the Criminal Trial Lawyers' Association's policing
committee.
"Our main concern is that
he let a whole bunch of officers off the hook entirely,"
Engel said.
Seven officers who monitored
the bars in the downtown area that night will face no disciplinary
action.
The CTLA also wants the entire
Overtime investigation released. "We believe it should be
a public document," said Engel, adding the association will
release it if it can.
City police spokesman Chris
McLeod said it is the CTLA's right to appeal.
"The chief believes the
actions he's taken are fair and just," said McLeod.
"Should the matter be
brought before the LERB, the chief will stand by his decisions."
-
- Columnist targeted
Two cops face disciplinary action in wake of drunk-driving operation
By DAN PALMER, EDMONTON
SUN, February 4, 2005
Two cops face disciplinary
action after an investigation into a drunk-driving operation
that focused on a Sun columnist and then monitored the head of
the police commission. City police Chief Fred Rayner said yesterday
traffic cops doing-drunk driving enforcement on Nov. 18 in the
downtown area received "source information" from their
supervisor at the start of their shift that Edmonton Sun columnist
Kerry Diotte was a risk to drive after drinking.
"Diotte was the subject
of our attention, not because of who he is, but because of information
that was received relative to his behaviour or what his conduct
might be relative to drinking and driving," Rayner said.
Rayner wouldn't explain the
source of the information, but said Staff Sgt. Bill Newton, head
of the traffic section, was the supervisor.
Newton now faces a disciplinary
hearing.
"I have concerns about
his treatment of information that led to the interest in ...
Diotte in the first place," said Rayner.
"That hearing will also
address inappropriate access to the police information system."
An officer later noticed Diotte's
car in the parking lot of the Overtime Broiler and Taproom, 10304
111 St.
Plainclothes cops went inside
to verify Diotte was there and spotted police commission chairman
Martin Ignasiak.
"He happened coincidentally
to be at the same location," said Rayner, referring to the
pair attending a provincial election candidates meet-and-greet
hosted by the Canadian Association of Journalists Edmonton chapter
and the International Association of Business Communicators.
Diotte and Ignasiak later left
in cabs, while officers stayed at the Overtime until 11:40 p.m.
when they were "satisfied" the remaining patrons would
act responsibly getting home, said Rayner.
Seven officers were doing the
drunk-driving enforcement in the 104 Avenue area, between 109
Street and 116 Street, that night, said Rayner. But he could
not say just how many impaired drivers the officers may have
stopped.
In a news release issued Nov.
21, police said officers had been tipped that two drunk men were
planning to drive.
Acting Chief Mike Bradshaw,
in charge of a separate investigation into the press release,
has also directed that Insp. Bryan Boulanger proceed to a disciplinary
hearing as a result of the news release and on whether its "content
was appropriate or not," Rayner said.
The seven officers who monitored
the bars that night face no disciplinary action because they
"acted on information they believed was factual," said
the police chief.
But one of those cops is under
investigation for using inappropriate language that night on
the radio. Two supervisors are also being investigated for failing
to address that issue. Rayner characterized the language as rude
and vulgar, although he wouldn't identify the target of the language.
Police are not releasing the
report from the investigation, citing the pending disciplinary
hearings and the potential for appeal. The disciplinary hearings
will be open to the media.
Cops see silver lining
Report on sting operation offers degree of comfort, closure
By ANDREA SANDS and
DAN PALMER, EDMONTON SUN, February 4, 2005
Police union bosses say they're
relieved a controversial police-conduct probe has ended and add
it proves officers never conspired to silence critics. "There
is a sense of relief, No. 1 that it's over, or at least part
of it is over or the bulk of it is over - the allegations of
targeting or corrupt behaviour and that sort of stuff,"
said Edmonton Police Association president Staff Sgt. Peter Ratcliff.
But police aren't quite out
from under the cloud, he added.
"They have at least one
further investigation with respect to what was said on the radio
and another investigation with respect to Staff Sgt. (Bill) Newton
and the tip he received."
Police Chief Fred Rayner said
yesterday two officers will face disciplinary hearings and another
officer is being investigated for making "vulgar" and
"rude" comments over police radios.
Newton, a traffic section supervisor,
faces Police Act charges of discreditable conduct and insubordination
regarding his handling of information about Sun columnist Kerry
Diotte, related to a November drunk-driving police operation.
Insp. Bryan Boulanger faces
a charge of discreditable conduct related to a news release issued
after the fact.
The president of the senior
officers association said the findings offer some closure for
police officers who were under scrutiny.
"Members that were involved
in the investigation were doing their job," Supt. Ed McFarlane
said.
The Criminal Trial Lawyers
Association - which filed a formal complaint about the drunk-driving
stakeout - intends to appeal some of the chief's decisions, said
Tom Engel, who heads up the association's police conduct committee.
Sun columnist Kerry Diotte,
who cops had concerns "was a risk to drive after drinking"
that night, said the full probe report should be made public.
"I'm very upset that the
police chief has once again indicated that somehow I'm a risk
to drink and drive," he added.
"I have never been charged
with drinking and driving. If I have a couple of drinks in a
bar, I take a taxi."
Police snoops warned
Using info system to check up on critics called 'incredibly serious'
By ANDREA SANDS and
DAN PALMER, EDMONTON SUN
Edmonton's police chief and
the mayor are expressing grave concerns after five police staffers
were slapped with warnings for checking up on two of the cops'
most vocal critics. "These individuals used the police information
system to run the names of either Martin Ignasiak or Kerry Diotte
in what I believe to be a contravention of EPS policy,"
police Chief Fred Rayner told reporters.
Rayner revealed yesterday that
official warnings have been issued against five employees who
allegedly used police systems to search for information about
Diotte, a Sun columnist, and Ignasiak, the chairman of the Edmonton
Police Commission. The employees warned are Staff Sgt. Brian
Nowlan, Const. Steve Minarchi, Const. Scott Mitchler, Const.
Elaine Jensen and civilian traffic safety analyst Nash Birdi.
Rayner said those alleged violations
of the cops' information policy happened before an unrelated
November drunk-driving operation at a downtown bar.
He acknowledged concerns about
the police information checks emerged only because of a broader
investigation into police conduct during the drunk-driving stakeout.
MOST USE INFORMATION PROPERLY
Rayner emphasized the "overwhelming
majority" of the 1,500 personnel with access to such information
use it properly.
Mayor Stephen Mandel said police
cannot take it upon themselves to act outside their authority
by digging up people's criminal records or other personal information.
"In my mind, it's incredibly
serious," Mandel said.
"We all must know that
our records are safe from anybody looking at them unless there's
cause to do it."
The main protection citizens
have against unwarranted snooping on police computers is "the
integrity of officers," Solicitor General Harvey Cenaiko
said yesterday.
However, citizens who think
a police officer has improperly searched for their information
can find out about it, he added. Private citizens can ask a police
force to reveal what records it has about them under the Freedom
of Information, Cenaiko said.
"They will provide that
to them."
The head of the police conduct
committee for the Criminal Trial Lawyers Association - which
filed a formal complaint about investigations at the Overtime
bar - said the association will likely appeal the police decision
to issue warnings.
The officers should face Police
Act charges of discreditable conduct or abuse of authority, Tom
Engel argued.
"Without some explanation
to put in context what they did, the only reasonable inference
is that they did it for a political purpose." See Kerry
Diotte column, Feb. 6, 2005
|
Truth can never be
told so as to be understood, and not be believ'd. William Blake, The Proverbs of Hell
