(This
column was published in the North
Shore News on
Mar. 4, 1998)
Police
morale suffering
By Leo Knight
ONE
of the stories dominating the headlines this past week was the
situation within the Vancouver Police Department, resulting from
a relatively routine fight call at the Roxy Cabaret.
On
a hot August night downtown patrol officers responded to an
affray at the popular Granville Street nightclub.
Upon
arrival, the cops managed to settle down all the combatants,
save one.
A
hulking, "juiced up" biker associate named Dave
Davidson.
Seemingly
unable or unwilling to calm down, the 38-year-old adolescent
talked himself into handcuffs and a night in jail.
Davidson,
the son of former Socred Speaker of the House, Walter Davidson,
got trussed up and had to be carried, face down, from the club
to the waiting paddy wagon.
No
easy feat given his huge size and the struggle he put up.
It
was because of the struggle, the three officers carrying him
lost their hold and dropped him on the sidewalk.
Oops!
Allegedly,
he then struck his cheek on the concrete in the process.
A
couple of days later he marched into police headquarters to
whine about being mistreated. An internal investigation into the
allegation was launched.
As
is customary, the internal investigators gathered all the
available evidence and submitted their report to Crown counsel
for determination relative to applicable charges, if any.
This
is done to ensure the independence of any decision made.
When
this was done in mid-February, the new Chief Constable committed
his most recent blunder.
He
suspended the three officers, somehow forgetting there had been
no determination of guilt by either a criminal court or
disciplinary tribunal and in direct contravention to advice
given him by the Internal Investigation squad.
Apparently
in Chief Bruce Chambers' world there is no presumption of
innocence despite that pesky Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Predictably,
the police union squawked loudly over this violation of the
officers' rights.
The
chief had to back off and reinstate the three officers albeit,
he put them in desk jobs, not back on the streets where they
have collectively served for almost 50 years.
His
ham-handed handling of this incident may have been the straw
that broke the camel's back in the way he is viewed by the
serving members.
Shortly
after his appointment, he announced he would be considering a
major re-organization of the department.
He
then proceeded to put together a plan virtually without any
significant input of senior officers who, unlike the new chief,
knew about the city, the department and from experience, what
works and what doesn't.
He
then committed an unforgivable faux pas in the eyes of most
officers.
He
found time to march at the head of the annual Gay Pride parade,
the first senior VPD officer ever to do so, but somehow couldn't
find the time to attend the annual retirement dinner, put on to
pay tribute to all the officers retiring in that calendar year.
This
year's honourees even included the much-liked Chief Ray Canuel,
Chambers' predecessor.
This
appeared to be a deliberate snub to the almost 500 serving,
retired and former officers who bought tickets to show their
support.
Chambers'
ticket was free and still he couldn't make it.
This
was the largest retirement dinner ever held in the VPD.
The
retirees represented over 540 years of collective police service
to the City of Vancouver.
For
some reason he wouldn't take the chief's traditional seat in the
middle of the head table and offer the opening remarks.
In
years past, if a chief couldn't make it for whatever reason, a
deputy chief was sent in his stead. Not this time.
Now
he has thrown due process out the window.
All
around police headquarters a couple of documents began showing
up on every bulletin board.
The
first, a take-off on TV host David Letterman's Top Ten, listed
reasons why the Chief "threw due process out the
window."
The
second was entitled, "A message from the Chief
Constable."
It
sarcastically pokes fun at the chief and the sweeping changes he
is making.
I
realize these type of things show up at many types of
workplaces, mocking management.
In
this case it's a very different scenario.
A
police force is a para-military organization.
Even
if the individual in the chief's office is disliked respect is
still accorded to the office.
Evidently,
in the Vancouver Police Department this is no longer the case.
The
new chief is being openly mocked.
This
has also resulted in good cops being reluctant to do their job.
They
no longer feel they have the backing of the executive.
The
"FIDO" syndrome is now de rigueur in our city.
In police jargon this means, "F*** It. Drive On."
Better
to keep your head down than do something and risk your job.
Sources
tell me morale has never been lower in the force.
Not
even at the height of the Marshall scandal, which precipitated
the appointment of Chief Canuel as a fence-mending measure.
At
the funeral last month of Chief Canuel, it was said, "we'll
never see his like again."
Pity.