B.C.’s new office to examine serious police incidents will not be equipped to fully address accountability issues dogging the province’s police agencies, says a long-time RCMP observer and police expert.
The civilian-led Independent Investigations Office (IIO) is set to start operations in B.C. on Sept. 10. The office’s mandate is to conduct criminal investigations into incidents resulting in death or serious harm when a member of any B.C. policy agency is involved, including the provincial RCMP.
“The idea of [the IIO] is touted as the answer to the issue of accountability—it simply is not,” says Robert Gordon, director of the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University.
Gordon says the IIO will help address the specific conflict of interest issues that arise when police are called to investigate their own colleagues after serious incidents, but these instances are relatively rare.
“It won’t cover the RCMP complaints. It won’t cover the RCMP in its federal function. It won’t cover day-to-day complaints against the municipal forces either. It’s concerned solely with issues of deaths involving police officers,” he says.
“When was the last police-related fatality in BC? It’s been a while. I think the [IIO’s] workload is going to be a lot less than some might anticipate.”
The IIO will be led by civilian Richard Rosenthal, a former U.S. prosecutor who created Portland’s first police oversight agency and served as Denver’s independent monitor since 2005.
The Surrey-based office is expected to have 60 full-time staff, consisting of both civilians and former police officers. The Chief Civilian Director cannot be a current or former member of a police force or RCMP, and the IIO aims to eventually be completely civilian-run.
Gordon says the independence of the current civilian/officer model will depend on where officers are recruited from.
“The primary recruiting source has been the provincial coroner’s service and they are used to working alongside police officers to the point where they are barely distinguishable at times. Hopefully a great deal of time and energy will be poured into erasing the distinctions amongst the personnel so they are working effectively as teams,” he says.
More Independent
The new office was a central recommendation of the Braidwood Commission, an inquiry into the fatal tasering of Robert Dziekanski by RCMP officers at the Vancouver International Airport in 2007.
“The perception that investigators will allow loyalty to fellow officers to interfere with the impartial investigative process, even if not justified in a given case, can lead to public distrust and an undermining of public confidence in the police,” reads the inquiry report.
According to a statement from the provincial government, the IIO will be more independent than similar offices in other provinces such as Alberta and Ontario because they report to the Attorney General rather than the minister responsible for policing.
Last week, the agreement between the IIO and B.C.’s police agencies was solidified when the parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), outlining the new office’s reach.
“The creation of this MOU is essential to the success of the Independent Investigations Office,” Rosenthal said in an Aug. 13 statement.
“Everyone came to the table, in good faith, to provide the IIO with the tools necessary to improve public confidence in investigations of the police and to bring the recommendations of Justice Braidwood to fruition. This is an excellent start.”
Minister of Justice and Attorney General Shirley Bond said the creation of the office and the signing of the MOU means “British Columbians can have more confidence in the investigation process and we believe this will ultimately enhance public confidence in overall policing in our province.”
Gordon says the biggest challenge the IIO will face in its formative years is ensuring its officers maintain an arms-length relationship with various police agencies, and winning public confidence and support.
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