freespirit
25th February 2012, 06:30 AM
In the span of 48 hours, Mounties from B.C. to P.E.I. made the news for all the wrong reasons.
http://news.sympatico.ca/oped/coffee-talk/rcmp_officers_antics_make_news_from_coast_to_coast/8b1199c2
The RCMP has built up plenty of goodwill in the force's lengthy history, but all that positive work can be squandered very quickly.
Like so many high-visibility occupations, our Mounties can do something right 1,000 times, but one error of judgment is what the public will remember.
No less than five stories hit the news this week that must leave the Mounties – and even their horses – shaking their heads.
In P.E.I., there are few details about an assault charge (http://news.sympatico.cbc.ca/local/ac/mountie_guilty_of_assault_unlawful_confinement/586c5f65) filed against an officer who allegedly used excessive force against a prisoner last April. Strangely, the officer has been allowed to continue on active duty despite the charges. In Montague, Sask., a constable's actions will leave his superiors wondering if he paid attention to any of the lessons at the police academy.
The officer has been found guilty of assault and unlawful confinement (http://news.sympatico.ctv.ca/local/sk/sask_mountie_charged_with_assault_causing_bodily_h arm/3008308d) after he got angry with a man who knew his rights. When the officer approached him and ordered him into his cruiser, the man refused and pointed out the cop had no right to confine him.
The officer grabbed the man around his neck, twisted his arm behind his back and threw him against the police car. The man was then kept in the car for about 10 minutes before being released.
The court heard that the officer had no reason to target the man, who just happened to be standing outside an apartment building where there was a noise complaint.
B.C. seems to be the centre of this week's bad news. A Kelowna Mountie responding to a call to pick up a shoplifter at a mall decided to park her cruiser (http://news.sympatico.ctv.ca/local/bc/kelowna_mountie_ticketed_for_parking_in_disabled_s pot/b8966038) in a parking space for handicapped drivers.
If there was an emergency in progress, no one would question an officer leaving their car wherever they like, but this was clearly no emergency. Misusing a parking space is bad. Misusing a space in such a public place makes it appear officers can simply ignore the laws that apply to the rest of us.
A superintendent at the local detachment responded wisely. He apologized to the person who complained and indicated the officer will face consequences: she will have to pay the fine for illegally parking in the space.
Another case in B.C. involves cash and cocaine (http://news.sympatico.ctv.ca/local/bc/mountie_investigated_after_cocaine_and_cash_go_mis sing/e34ea304) that has gone missing after a drug bust. It could be a case of internal theft or maybe the evidence was lost, but in either case, there is a need for better controls.
A Vancouver Island Mountie has been "removed from operations" since the loss of about one-third of a gram of cocaine and $10,000 in cash disappeared.
The detachment commander told a reporter that the handling of evidence will be changed.
It's hard to believe that there wasn't a clear system already in place for dealing with evidence. Two people should always be aware of the handling and storage of evidence, and they should have to sign for it. That process doesn't just prevent theft or loss, it a key part of continuity that means judges can trust the evidence presented in their courtrooms.
Still in B.C., two officers who had at least one sexual rendezvous (http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/1135240--mountie-who-had-affair-with-superior-officer-won-t-get-new-hearing) in a police cruiser are facing discipline. A female constable and a male staff-sergeant allegedly used RCMP communications gear to contact each other and then had sex while on duty.
If you're going to sully the name of a police force, it's hard to imagine a more sensational way to go about it.
The pair is facing an RCMP conduct board. The staff-sergeant has already been sentenced to a loss of 10 days pay, which doesn't seem to fit the seriousness of the misconduct.
The constable faces a penalty up to the loss of her job, which certainly goes too far. Throwing away her 14-year career is a punishment that could bring the Mounties even more bad press as there's no doubt the inequity between the sentences will make further headlines.
Have mistakes permanently damaged the RCMP's reputation? Are the number of errors a sign that the force's management is failing?
---yes, and yes. big time.
http://news.sympatico.ca/oped/coffee-talk/rcmp_officers_antics_make_news_from_coast_to_coast/8b1199c2
The RCMP has built up plenty of goodwill in the force's lengthy history, but all that positive work can be squandered very quickly.
Like so many high-visibility occupations, our Mounties can do something right 1,000 times, but one error of judgment is what the public will remember.
No less than five stories hit the news this week that must leave the Mounties – and even their horses – shaking their heads.
In P.E.I., there are few details about an assault charge (http://news.sympatico.cbc.ca/local/ac/mountie_guilty_of_assault_unlawful_confinement/586c5f65) filed against an officer who allegedly used excessive force against a prisoner last April. Strangely, the officer has been allowed to continue on active duty despite the charges. In Montague, Sask., a constable's actions will leave his superiors wondering if he paid attention to any of the lessons at the police academy.
The officer has been found guilty of assault and unlawful confinement (http://news.sympatico.ctv.ca/local/sk/sask_mountie_charged_with_assault_causing_bodily_h arm/3008308d) after he got angry with a man who knew his rights. When the officer approached him and ordered him into his cruiser, the man refused and pointed out the cop had no right to confine him.
The officer grabbed the man around his neck, twisted his arm behind his back and threw him against the police car. The man was then kept in the car for about 10 minutes before being released.
The court heard that the officer had no reason to target the man, who just happened to be standing outside an apartment building where there was a noise complaint.
B.C. seems to be the centre of this week's bad news. A Kelowna Mountie responding to a call to pick up a shoplifter at a mall decided to park her cruiser (http://news.sympatico.ctv.ca/local/bc/kelowna_mountie_ticketed_for_parking_in_disabled_s pot/b8966038) in a parking space for handicapped drivers.
If there was an emergency in progress, no one would question an officer leaving their car wherever they like, but this was clearly no emergency. Misusing a parking space is bad. Misusing a space in such a public place makes it appear officers can simply ignore the laws that apply to the rest of us.
A superintendent at the local detachment responded wisely. He apologized to the person who complained and indicated the officer will face consequences: she will have to pay the fine for illegally parking in the space.
Another case in B.C. involves cash and cocaine (http://news.sympatico.ctv.ca/local/bc/mountie_investigated_after_cocaine_and_cash_go_mis sing/e34ea304) that has gone missing after a drug bust. It could be a case of internal theft or maybe the evidence was lost, but in either case, there is a need for better controls.
A Vancouver Island Mountie has been "removed from operations" since the loss of about one-third of a gram of cocaine and $10,000 in cash disappeared.
The detachment commander told a reporter that the handling of evidence will be changed.
It's hard to believe that there wasn't a clear system already in place for dealing with evidence. Two people should always be aware of the handling and storage of evidence, and they should have to sign for it. That process doesn't just prevent theft or loss, it a key part of continuity that means judges can trust the evidence presented in their courtrooms.
Still in B.C., two officers who had at least one sexual rendezvous (http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/1135240--mountie-who-had-affair-with-superior-officer-won-t-get-new-hearing) in a police cruiser are facing discipline. A female constable and a male staff-sergeant allegedly used RCMP communications gear to contact each other and then had sex while on duty.
If you're going to sully the name of a police force, it's hard to imagine a more sensational way to go about it.
The pair is facing an RCMP conduct board. The staff-sergeant has already been sentenced to a loss of 10 days pay, which doesn't seem to fit the seriousness of the misconduct.
The constable faces a penalty up to the loss of her job, which certainly goes too far. Throwing away her 14-year career is a punishment that could bring the Mounties even more bad press as there's no doubt the inequity between the sentences will make further headlines.
Have mistakes permanently damaged the RCMP's reputation? Are the number of errors a sign that the force's management is failing?
---yes, and yes. big time.