Hamilton councillor to sit out police board meetings amid provincial probe into conduct

A Hamilton councillor expects his departure from a member post on the local police services board will be temporary amid a provincial investigation into accusations he violated code of conduct rules.

Downtown Coun. Cameron Kroetsch believes the complaint filed against him in December 2023 is an attempt to remove him from the board after scrutinizing the 2024 multi-million-dollar police budget that was sent back in January to find more savings.

But he won’t be giving up the post, insisting any information shared during budget talks was in no way “untrue,” “defamatory” or “disparaging” of the board or service itself.

“I don’t get a lot of insight as to what happens next. These things take as long as they take,” Kroetsch said Monday after receiving notice of the Ontario Civilian Police Commission (OCPC) investigation late last week.

To his understanding, facts he publically shared on social media and a motion put before the city’s audit, finance and administration committee asking them to direct the usage of police budget surpluses are what are being probed.

An application Kroetsch made before the OCPC investigation suggesting the board’s actions during police budget discussions were “procedurally unfair” and “an abuse of process” has now been withdrawn until the outcome of the inquiry.

Hamilton Police Services Board chair Pat Mandy confirmed to Global News Monday that the OCPC has taken on the request, as of Friday, and that she would not be commenting further “to protect the integrity of the investigation.”

However, she did include an excerpt from the Police Services Act with regard to board code of conduct that states that a member whose “conduct or performance is being investigated” shall decline to exercise their duties for the duration of the inquiry.

She confirmed the Ward 2 councillor will be “stepping away” from his police board duties and asks other board members to refrain from communicating “anything publicly” about the examination to keep it confidential.

During the budget process in the second half of 2023,  Kroetsch would voice his opposition to a $200 million number being dangled by Hamilton Police alleging “due diligence” was not practiced since he and others were “not able to go through the budget in any kind of detailed manner.”

Hamilton councillors sent back the 2024 budget in late January asking the board to shaving off some of $215 million the service was is seeking from the city.

The motion, put forward by Kroetsch, sought a “review and consideration” that would cap any increase on municipal taxpayers to no more than four per cent over the coming 12 months through “efficiencies.”

Ultimately, no changes were made and the budget would be approved in mid-February.

In all, Kroetsch doesn’t believe there’s a valid complaint that rises to the level of seriousness that’s being undertaken.

He’s also pondered why Mayor Andrea Horwath, who participated in votes tied to his motions in question, is not being held to the same account by the board.

“They’re complaining about motions that she participated in, that I participated in, that many other councils participated in,” he said.

“They’re calling those into question as being right or not, and so I’m not sure why I’m being censured out in that discussion.”

A spokesperson for the OCPC did not lay out a timeline for the investigation after a query from Global News.

Kroetsch believes it all means he’ll miss out on “many important meetings” over the next few months as he sits and waits for the agency to reach out on next steps.

“I look forward to this being dismissed, I hope, and getting back to work,” he said.

“In no way, shape or form am I going to let this intimidate me, stop me from doing my work.”