B.C.’s police watchdog says a “senior” Vancouver police officer has been suspended after inappropriately accessing a minor’s “sensitive information.”
The Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner (OPCC) said the officer’s name is being withheld because it could be used to identify the young person in question.
Deputy Police Complaints Commissioner Andrea Spindler said the officer was a constable, and that they would not be paid while on leave.
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The OPCC said that the officer accessed information — some of it protected by the Youth Criminal Justice Act — for a personal purpose, then disclosed it to “unauthorized persons.”
The OPCC said it oversaw an investigation by an independent adjudicator into the incident.
It said the adjudicator settled on three five-day suspensions — to be served concurrently — as a penalty, concluding “the seriousness of this misconduct by a senior officer, particularly where much of the subject matter is data protected by the YCJA, merits discipline that will serve as a deterrence to other members.”
The adjudicator also called on the VPD to place a renewed focus on training around the use of databases and disclosure of information, the OPCC said.
“We respect the function of the OPCC and their independent process,” said VPD spokesperson Sgt. Jason Robillard in an email.
“The VPD does not have anything to add regarding this decision.”
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