(Ottawa) The Federal Court has ruled that Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Commissioner Brenda Lucki broke the law by failing to promptly respond to a report revealing alleged espionage practices against anti-oil activists.
Updated 23:44 yesterday
In a decision released Tuesday, Associate Chief Justice of the Federal Court, Jocelyne Gagné, said that Mr.me Lucki failed in his duty under the RCMP Act by failing to respond “as soon as possible” to the interim report of the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP (CRCC) regarding allegations of espionage .
This decision constitutes a victory for the Civil Liberties Association of British Columbia, which denounced a culture of convenience in the RCMP explaining that the police force is dragging its feet in the treatment of complaints.
The CCETP launched a public interest investigation into the espionage allegations, then forwarded an interim report to the RCMP in June 2017, seeking comments on the findings and recommendations made.
The independent body, which is tasked with overseeing the work of the RCMP, could not write a final report or recommendations on this complaint until Commissioner Lucki provided a response to the draft.
Therefore, the complainants and the public have had to wait a long time to obtain answers in this case.
Brenda Lucki finally responded to the interim report in November 2020, more than three years later, after the Civil Liberties Association turned to the courts.
Justice Gagné noted that the requirement means that the Commissioner should have up to six months to respond to an interim report, except in exceptional circumstances. It would be up to the commissioner to argue that more time is necessary, said the magistrate.
The deadline is in line with a memorandum of understanding signed in December 2019 by the complaints commission and the RCMP, which sets a six-month target for responses.
Late Tuesday, the RCMP said in an email that they respected the court ruling that their response to the BC Civil Liberties Association was not provided as soon as possible.
The police force attributed the delay in part to the number of interim reports published, the scale and complexity of the cases and the volume of material to be analyzed.
To address the delay, the RCMP said it began developing an action plan in 2019, including a substantial increase in the number of staff responsible for the review and analysis.
“We are making significant progress in responding to CCETP interim reports,” read a written statement.
“In November 2021, we cleared our backlog of public complaints and are confident that the measures we have put in place will continue to meet the six-month deadline for responding to CCETP reports. ”
The RCMP said it was already following court direction on all new interim reports it received since 1er April.
A spokesperson for the Minister of Public Safety’s office said the RCMP agreed that three years is too long to respond to such a complaint filed with the commission.
“Delays hurt not only those who file a complaint, but also the police service they are concerned with,” Alexander Cohen wrote in an email.
“Our government has made it a priority to establish precise deadlines to respond to the CCETP’s recommendations, as well as to improve overall surveillance. This is part of our broader efforts to accelerate reform within the RCMP and create a culture of accountability, transparency and openness. ”
Paul Champ, an attorney for the Civil Liberties Association, said the court ruling “is a huge victory for police accountability and for communities from coast to coast to coast demanding justice.”
“For the first time, a court has made it clear that the RCMP Commissioner must respond quickly to CCETP reports and has imposed a strict time limit on how quickly she must respond. We hope this decision will put an end to the RCMP’s long-standing culture of convenience. ”
The court ruling is a step in the right direction, said Jessica Magonet, also a lawyer in the case.
“The communities demanded an end to the abuse of power by the police,” said Mr.e Magonet. The Federal Court ruling shows that the RCMP commissioner cannot continue to thwart the complaints process by sitting on reports for years to come. In matters of police responsibility, delayed justice is an absence of justice. ”