Victoria Officer being Investigated for Using Excessive Force

VICTORIA ,Canada

Victoria's police chief has ordered a criminal investigation into an allegation of excessive use of force by one of his officers.

Chief Jamie Graham says the allegation arose from an October arrest of two people for being intoxicated in public.

Mr. Graham says the people involved were not seriously hurt, but he could not provide any further details.

An internal police review and investigation under B.C.'s Police Act were launched and because the allegation involves use of force, Mr. Graham said yesterday he has ordered a criminal investigation as well.

The officer involved, who has been on the force for three years, has been reassigned.

Mr. Graham said the incident and others like it show the need for more supervision in the police cell block, so as of this week there is a sergeant posted in the jail full-time.

"We owe all inmates and prisoners, no matter what their condition and behaviour, an additional level of care. Many are sick, injured, intoxicated; many are mentally ill, and may not be able to look after themselves or behave as they normally do," Mr. Graham said at a news conference.

"Any use of force in the cell area must be justified in law. Regardless of the circumstances of why someone is in our custody, they deserve to be treated with respect."

Last year, a B.C. jury awarded $60,000 to Willow Kinloch, a Victoria teen who spent four hours tied up in a padded cell and tethered to the cell door in May of 2005. The Victoria Police Department has appealed the decision.

The police force has had other high-profile internal investigations recently.

Deputy chief John Ducker is facing a conflict-of-interest investigation after allegations surfaced that he was contacted to help an acquaintance whose son had been arrested for theft under $5,000.

Police said the acquaintance wanted Mr. Ducker's help to ensure that the young man would face stern consequences for a crime that sometimes doesn't even result in charges.

The allegations of conflict of interest were later found to be unsubstantiated by Abbotsford's police chief.

And last August, former police chief Paul Battershill quit days before he was to face a disciplinary hearing.

An RCMP investigation found no criminal wrongdoing but found complaints of favouritism over Mr. Battershill's personal relationship with a person who provided services to the police department.

Mr. Graham, Mr. Battershill's replacement, also faced heavy criticism as Vancouver's chief of police for the way he handled allegations of misconduct against his officers.

An independent investigation by another police force found Mr. Graham guilty of discreditable conduct for failing to co-operate with an RCMP probe of 50 allegations of misconduct against Vancouver police on behalf of residents of the city's notorious Downtown Eastside neighbourhood.

B.C. Police Complaint Commissioner Dirk Ryneveld wrote that although Mr. Graham did not condone the lack of co-operation by the officers, he did not take the necessary steps to ensure they complied.