Layton Selzler was due to fly out of Saskatoon Thursday to start his new EMS job in northern Alberta, but since he shares the same birthdate as a Canadian criminal, he’s grounded in Saskatchewan.
Changes made by the RCMP in July to the vulnerable sector search, required for those who volunteer or work with the disabled, elderly or children, mean that simply having a birthdate and gender that matches a criminal record is enough to require applicants to send fingerprints to the RCMP-run Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) in Ottawa to prove their identity.
“When they tell you you’re flagged, you almost get the feeling that you’ve been accused of something or that you’re guilty,” said Selzler, 31.
Selzler got the news he was flagged on Sept. 9. He had to pay an additional $35 to the RCMP for the fingerprinting and he’s been told it could be three weeks to 10 months to get the results back from Ottawa.
The Saskatoon Commissionaires used to offer a digital fingerprinting service that had a much shorter wait time, but it was discontinued about a month ago, he says.
His employer is holding the position for the time being, but if the results aren’t back soon, Selzler says there’s no way the job will still be there, leaving him to find another way to support his family.
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“This is going to make the next little while a bit more difficult. We definitely anticipated the paycheque,” he said.
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“I gave notice at my job about a month ago — obviously I didn’t anticipate the issues. Now I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place. In the meantime, I’m just going to have to keep making inquiries, maybe pick up some part time or casual work in Saskatchewan.”
Selzler is troubled that nobody he has spoken to, from the RCMP to Saskatoon police, seems to know why the change was made or why no prior notice was given.
RCMP acknowledge they are casting a wide net, but they say the change is necessary to help them flag convicted sexual offenders who have changed their names.
“The reason behind that is there are many provinces where people with sexual offences criminal records do not have to report to anyone for a name change,” said RCMP spokesperson Sgt. Julie Gagnon.
Alberta and British Columbia require that fingerprints be provided before a name can legally be changed, except for a name change due to marriage, but rules in other provinces are less stringent.
“Before this, they could show up for a vulnerable sector check with a different name, the same date of birth and gender and it wouldn’t show up as a match. Sex offenders were falling through the cracks and were able to work with kids again,” Gagnon said.
The CPIC website says it can take more than 120 days to process fingerprints, but Gagnon says it should only take that long if the fingerprints provided matched a criminal’s prints on file.
But if the RCMP had thought a little harder about the search parameters, Selzler says he wouldn’t have to be waiting in the first place.
“With no foresight to see that they could have cross-referenced it with the social insurance number, or cross-referenced it with something else, it just blows me away.”
Selzler is also frustrated by the lack of communication about the change.
“You’d think a change this dramatic would have been put out there. They should have notified people who work in vulnerable sector. As a paramedic, I’m subject to vulnerable sector checks quite frequently, but if there’s 25,000 people in the registry, the odds of you having the same birthday as someone are pretty high.”
In fact there are a lot more records than that. About 4.5 million Canadians possess a criminal record, according to RCMP statistics.
The changes have had a drastic effect. Since the search criteria were broadened, about 200 people a month in Saskatoon are flagged and required to send fingerprints to CPIC, out of more than 1,000 applicants, says Saskatoon police spokesperson Tisha-Rae Stonehouse. Before, it was only an occasional occurrence — less than 10 a year, she said.
rmaclean@thestarphoenix.com
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