Yukon police are accused of “improper use of force, oppressive conduct, improper attitude and neglect of duty,” according to the Commission of Public Complaints Against the RCMP.
In 2007, the M division received 28 complaints.
That same year, police in Nunavut received 17 complaints and RCMP in the Northwest Territories received 12.
The Whitehorse detachment received the most complaints, followed by Haines Junction.
Whitehorse was singled out for its improper use of force and improper attitude. Haines Junction also faced complaints about irregularity in procedure.
Of the Yukon complaints, 13 were formally investigated.
“The majority of the RCMP’s findings—98 per cent—did not support the complainant’s allegation(s),” according to the report.
“Only two per cent of the findings were in support of the complainant’s allegation(s).”
The commission’s role is to hold the RCMP accountable.
“This public accountability is not only essential in helping ensure that police officers exercise their authority legally and appropriately, but is also a key element in the checks and balances required to tackle crime in Canada,” says the report.
But in reviewing the complaints process, the commission ran into some trouble.
“The biggest limitation has been gathering the completed complaint dispositions,” says the report.
“Divisions and detachments are not always submitting all of the necessary documents—this has impacted the commission’s ability to provide a complete analysis.”
The RCMP needs to tidy up its complaints process, says the report.
The RCMP needs “a more efficient means of tracking public complaints,” it says. Also, those tasked with capturing public complaints need to be appropriately trained and manuals related to the public complaint process need to be “immediately updated to ensure a standardized national approach.”
The RCMP must also commit to improving its service standards by reducing wait times and increasing processing times for complaint dispositions, says the report.
Contact Genesee Keevil
at gkeevil@yukon-news.com