The head of B.C.’s police watchdog wants the government to review the BC Prosecution Service’s handling of his office’s recommendations for criminal charges against officers.
Ron MacDonald, the Independent Investigations Office of BC chief civilian director, said statistics collected by his office show a stunningly low number of prosecutions in cases where his office has investigated officers’ actions and submitted a report recommending charges to the prosecution service. The IIO investigates all police-related incidents that result in death or serious harm.
That’s leading to a loss of public confidence in the systems that are supposed to be holding police accountable, MacDonald said. He plans to ask Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth, responsible for Crown prosecutors, to investigate.
MacDonald says the prosecution service is approving recommended charges against police officers less than 50 per cent of the time. That’s much lower than the approval rate for criminal charges recommended by police agencies against other potential offenders.
Of the 15 charges against police officers that have been approved over the past five years, none has resulted in a conviction.
I like how the summary’s last sentence answers the question in the thesis perfectly.
But if they ask, I expect Mike Farnworth (Surrey’s future mayor after Brenda and her entire team quits and hands him the keys) will only be too happy to recommend federal cops get charged with something.
