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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016-CPO-002 Complaints Against CPOs COUNTY OF NEWELL - POLICY HANDBOOK POLICY NO: 2016-CPO-002 TITLE: COMPLAINTS AGAINST COMMUNITY PEACE OFFICERS ADOPTED: February 11, 2016 (C-53/16) SUPERCEDES NO: 2012-CPO-002 TO BE REVIEWED: PAGE NO: 1 of 8 As required by the policies of the Alberta Department of the Solicitor General and Public Security, as a condition to employ Peace Officers, a policy must be adopted by Council to establish a procedure to deal with complaints of inappropriate actions. Any complaints against County of Newell Peace Officers will be conducted using the criteria outlined in Section 21.0, of the Public Security Peace Officer Program Policy and Procedures Manual, Complaints against Peace Officers. The complaint process will be attended to by the Community Peace Officer Supervisor, and in certain cases, where required, the Director of Municipal Services, or designate. The formal complaints or other information about inappropriate conduct of a County of Newell Peace Officer shall be directed to the County of Newell, Director of Municipal Services, P.O. Box 130, Brooks, Alberta, Canada T1R 1B2. PUBLIC COMPLAINTS AND DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES PROCEDURE 1. Any public complaints that allege Criminal Code violations against County of Newell Community Peace Officers must be turned over to the RCMP. The County of Newell Director of Municipal Services, or designate, will not proceed with their investigation until the RCMP has concluded their investigation. 2. Any public complaints against a County of Newell Community Peace Officer must be in writing unless a complainant is unable to make the complaint in writing, due to a language barrier or disability. In this case the complaint will be treated as if it was received in writing. 3. When a complaint is received against a County of Newell Community Peace Officer, the complaint will be categorized as “Complaint of Service” or “Complaint of Conduct”. 4. Complaints that are normally considered less serious may include: a) Failing to respond to a complaint b) Failing to complete an investigation c) Improper application or interpretation of the law d) Failing to communicate with complaints and witnesses as a best practice COUNTY OF NEWELL - POLICY HANDBOOK POLICY NO: 2016-CPO-002 TITLE: COMPLAINTS AGAINST COMMUNITY PEACE OFFICERS ADOPTED: February 11, 2016 (C-53/16) SUPERCEDES NO: 2012-CPO-002 TO BE REVIEWED: PAGE NO: 2 of 8 e) Failing to exercise appropriate discretion when conducting enforcement 5. Complaints of conduct may be considered more serious and may include: a) Breaches of the Code of Conduct or policy b) Breaches of the Peace Officer Appointment c) Breaches of municipal, provincial or federal laws 6. If a member of the public presents himself in person to make a verbal complaint about a County of Newell Community Peace Officer, but refuses to commit the complaint to writing, a report will be compiled outlining the circumstances and the Director of Municipal Services, or designate, will take what, if any, steps they deem necessary. These complaints are not captured under the provisions in Section 14 of the Peace Officer Act. 7. Verbal complaints made by phone may be subject of an occurrence report at the discretion of the Director of Municipal Services, or designate. 8. The Director of Municipal Services, or designate, must investigate written complaints against County of Newell Peace Officers, except after a thorough review, they may discontinue the investigation if the complaint is found to be frivolous, vexatious or made in bad faith. The complainant must be notified, in writing, stating the reasons for not investigating or for discontinuing the investigation. 9. The Director of Municipal Services, or designate, must investigate, when he receives information other than from public complaints, when a Peace Officer has failed to comply with the terms of his appointment, and the reporting requirements are the same as if the complaint had been a public complaint. An informal complaints resolution process may be used to deal with public complaints with the agreement of the County of Newell Peace Officer and complainant. COUNTY OF NEWELL - POLICY HANDBOOK POLICY NO: 2016-CPO-002 TITLE: COMPLAINTS AGAINST COMMUNITY PEACE OFFICERS ADOPTED: February 11, 2016 (C-53/16) SUPERCEDES NO: 2012-CPO-002 TO BE REVIEWED: PAGE NO: 3 of 8 Complaints Process for Peace Officers working for (County of Newell) Established pursuant to section 15 of the Peace Officer Act. 1. A complaint must be in writing and received by the employer. 2. The employer must, within 30 days and in writing, acknowledge receipt of the complaint to the complainant. 3. Notify the peace officer involved of the complaint if appropriate. (see section 21.6 of the Program Manual for details) 4. The employer must submit details of complaints made to the Director of Law Enforcement in accordance with the Public Security Peace Officer Program Policy and Procedure Manual. 5. The employer will investigate the allegations of the complaint by interviewing the complainant, any witnesses, the peace officer(s) involved if they so consent, and any other person who may have knowledge relevant to the occurrence. 6. The employer will review any relevant documents in existence pertaining to the occurrence including, but not limited to: i. Occurrence reports; ii. Dispatch logs; iii. Peace officer notebook(s); iv. Court reports; v. Legal documents. 7. The employer will notify the complainant, the peace officer involved if appropriate, and Director as to the status of the investigation at least once every 45 days. 8. Upon conclusion of the investigation the employer must notify the complainant, the peace officer involved, and the Director of the disposition of COUNTY OF NEWELL - POLICY HANDBOOK POLICY NO: 2016-CPO-002 TITLE: COMPLAINTS AGAINST COMMUNITY PEACE OFFICERS ADOPTED: February 11, 2016 (C-53/16) SUPERCEDES NO: 2012-CPO-002 TO BE REVIEWED: PAGE NO: 4 of 8 the complaint using wording found in Section 22 of the Peace Officer (Ministerial) Regulation, which reads as follows: i. ‘The complaint is unfounded.’ This means that on the basis of a thorough investigation no reasonable belief exists that the complaint has merit or basis. ii. ‘The complaint is unsubstantiated.’ This means that on the basis of a thorough investigation there is insufficient evidence to determine the facts of the complaint and that it may or may not have occurred. iii. ‘The complaint is found to have merit in whole or in part.’ This means that on the basis of a thorough investigation that: a) ‘In whole’ a reasonable belief exists that the peace officer has engaged in misconduct in regards to the entirety of the complaint or; b) ‘In part’ a reasonable belief exists that the peace officer has engaged in misconduct in regards to a portion(s) of the complaint, but not in its entirety. iv. ‘The complaint is frivolous, vexatious or made in bad faith’. This disposition will be used when an authorized employer chooses not to investigate a complaint as per section 15(2) of the Act which allows no investigation to occur when the complaint is deemed to be frivolous, vexatious, or made in bad faith. 9. The conclusion letter issued to the complaint must contain the following closing paragraph which communicates to the complainant that appeals of the decision reached by the authorized employer must be addressed to the Director as required in Section 15 of the act. PLEASE BE ADVISED YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO APPEAL THESE FINDINGS TO THE DIRECTOR OF LAW ENFORCEMENT FOR THE PROVINCE OF ALBERTA PURSUANT TO SECTION 15(4) OF THE PEACE OFFICER ACT. AN APPEAL MUST BE IN WRITING AND INITIATED WITHIN 30 DAYS OF RECEIPT OF THIS DECISION, AND ANY DECISION REACHED BY THE DIRECTOR OF LAW ENFORCEMENT ON APPEAL IS FINAL. COUNTY OF NEWELL - POLICY HANDBOOK POLICY NO: 2016-CPO-002 TITLE: COMPLAINTS AGAINST COMMUNITY PEACE OFFICERS ADOPTED: February 11, 2016 (C-53/16) SUPERCEDES NO: 2012-CPO-002 TO BE REVIEWED: PAGE NO: 5 of 8 Correspondence to the Director must be sent to: Director of Law Enforcement th 10th Floor, 10365 – 97 Street Edmonton AB T5J 3W7 Appendix H – Informal Resolution of Complaints Informal Complaints Process for Peace Officers working for (County of Newell) Section 15(2) (b) of the Peace Officer Act allows for an authorized employer to refuse to investigate or may discontinue the investigation of a complaint if, in the authorized employers opinion and having regard to all of the circumstances, no investigation is necessary. The direct manager of the Peace Officer against which a complaint has been made has the authority to informally resolve the public complaint. This shall be accomplished by meeting with the complainant to discuss their concerns, circumstances, facts and any information pertaining to the complaint. If a mutually agreeable solution can be reached by all parties involved the complaint shall be deemed to be resolved and no investigation is necessary. All complaints resolved in this manner, pursuant to the Peace Officer Act, will be reported to the Director on a monthly basis. IMMEDIATE REPORTING 1. Use of a firearm discharged at a person or not as part of County of Newell Peace Officer’s duties. 2. County of Newell Peace Officer involved in serious injury or death of a person. 3. Complaint of excessive force (public or internal). 4. County of Newell Peace Officer involved where weapon was used by another person. COUNTY OF NEWELL - POLICY HANDBOOK POLICY NO: 2016-CPO-002 TITLE: COMPLAINTS AGAINST COMMUNITY PEACE OFFICERS ADOPTED: February 11, 2016 (C-53/16) SUPERCEDES NO: 2012-CPO-002 TO BE REVIEWED: PAGE NO: 6 of 8 5. County of Newell Peace Officer involved in serious or sensitive matter. 6. Charge or arrest of a County of Newell Peace Officer under the Criminal Code, Controlled Drugs and Substances Act or any other enactment of Canada. 7. Charge or arrest of a County of Newell Peace Officer under an enactment of Alberta (except minor traffic). 8. County of Newell Peace Officer found to have violated the employer’s code of conduct. 9. Suspension, termination or resignation of a County of Newell Peace Officer. REPORT WITHIN TWO (2) BUSINESS DAYS 1. Use of baton. 2. Use of OC spray. REPORT WITHIN ONE (1) MONTH 1. Lesser public complaint about a County of Newell Peace Officer (not captured above). 2. Authorized employer-initiated investigation (not captured above). 3. Disposition of current or previous investigation or incident. REPORT WITHIN 45 DAYS 1. Update to the status of ongoing investigation until disposition. COUNTY OF NEWELL - POLICY HANDBOOK POLICY NO: 2016-CPO-002 TITLE: COMPLAINTS AGAINST COMMUNITY PEACE OFFICERS ADOPTED: February 11, 2016 (C-53/16) SUPERCEDES NO: 2012-CPO-002 TO BE REVIEWED: PAGE NO: 7 of 8 DIRECTOR, DESIGNATE OR POLICE TO INVESTIGATE 1. Use of a firearm discharged at a person or not as part of a County of Newell Peace Officer’s duties. 2. County of Newell Peace officer involved in serious injury or death of a person. 3. Complaint of excessive force (public or internal). 4. County of Newell Peace Officer involved where a weapon was used by another person. 5. County of Newell Peace Officer involved in serious or sensitive matter. ANNUAL REPORT BY EMPLOYER (As per Section 12 of the Peace Officer (Ministerial) Regulation AR 312/2006) 1. Current name and position of the program contact person. 2. Updated list of County of Newell Peace Officer’s employed, and their positions within the County of Newell. 3. A short summary describing the general nature of services provided by the County of Newell Peace Officers, the operational practices of the County of Newell Peace Officers employed, and listing showing enforcement and enforcement-related activities that took place. 4. The report due date will be January 31 each year, unless the County of Newell advises the Director of an alternate annual report date. PEACE OFFICER REPORTING REQUIREMENTS REPORT WITHIN 24 HOURS 1. Any event in which the County of Newell Peace Officer has been charged, or arrested, for an offence under the Criminal Code, controlled Drugs and Substances Act, or any other enactment of Canada. COUNTY OF NEWELL - POLICY HANDBOOK POLICY NO: 2016-CPO-002 TITLE: COMPLAINTS AGAINST COMMUNITY PEACE OFFICERS ADOPTED: February 11, 2016 (C-53/16) SUPERCEDES NO: 2012-CPO-002 TO BE REVIEWED: PAGE NO: 8 of 8 2. Any event in which the County of Newell Peace Officer has been charged, or arrested, for an offence under a provincial statue of Alberta. 3. Loss of the County of Newell Peace Officer’s ID card. NOTIFYING PEACE OFFICERS ABOUT COMPLAINTS 1. A County of Newell Peace Officer will normally be advised of a public complaint, of which he is the subject, and provided with a copy of the written complaint. 2. There are circumstances where the employer may choose to not disclose the complaint to the County of Newell Peace Officer, as it may have a negative impact on the investigation or it may cause the complainant excess discomfort or to fear for their safety. The following are some examples of what would be included: a) The complainant may be placed in physical danger b) The complainant may face non-violent retaliation by the County of Newell Peace Officer c) There may be potential destruction of evidence during the investigation d) If there is any likelihood of a criminal investigation being initiated e) Other situations that may be determined by the employer DISCIPLINE FOR MISCONDUCT 1. In the event a complaint is found to have merit in whole or in part, the County of Newell Health & Safety Manual Section 2 Disciplinary Policy Directive will be followed.