RCMP

OTTAWA – The RCMP watchdog has launched a systemic investigation of the British Columbia unit that polices anti-logging and pipeline protests, just as a proposed class-action lawsuit is filed in court over the actions of those officers.

Michelaine Lahaie, chairperson of the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission, says in a statement that the investigation will look into the activities and operations of the RCMP “E” Division Community-Industry Response Group.

Based on the Coastal GasLink incident my impression is that the RCMP do as little as possible.

The federal police force says it’s facing recruitment challenges while at the same time dealing with the departure of regular members at high rates over the last decade.

“While there has recently been an increase in departures relative to historical averages, it is likely that this is a ‘catch-up,” as 2020 saw far fewer retirements than would normally be expected,” RCMP spokesperson Kim Chamberland told The Epoch Times.

RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki has announced her retirement and will step down from the top job next month.

In a statement, Lucki said she had made a “personal decision” to leave the post.

“This was not an easy decision as I love the RCMP and have loved being the 24th commissioner. I am so incredibly proud to have had the opportunity to lead this historic organization and witness first hand the tremendous work being done each and every day by all employees from coast to coast to coast and internationally,” she said.

Five members of Canada’s federal police force are facing charges in connection with the fatal arrest of an indigenous man nearly six years ago.

Dale Culver died in police custody on 18 July 2017 at the age of 35.

The five officers are members of the Prince George Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). The charges were filed by prosecutors in British Columbia.

Two of the Mounties are charged with manslaughter, while the other three are charged with obstructing justice.

It could be called the nuclear option.

There’s a belief among some that Canada should dismantle the RCMP in the face of the scandal and criticism that plague the force.

It would certainly be a dramatic change to the landscape of policing in this country. The force’s red serge, horses and the saying that they “always get their man” have long been associated with Canada. Hollywood has made productions drawing on the Mountie image for more than 100 years, going back to films such as 1921’s silent movie “O’Malley of the Mounted.”

EDMONTON—When Ron Zazulak joined the RCMP, it was seen as the “big leagues” of policing, he says.

He doesn’t think that’s the case anymore. And there are indications he’s not alone in his opinion.

Zazulak spent a career with the Mounties after joining the force in the 1960s. When he retired in 2000, he bought a farm with his wife and spent years living in rural Alberta near St. Lina, where they bordered three different RCMP detachment areas — the closest one being in St. Paul, 40 minutes away.

Harry Bond is blunt in his assessment of the RCMP’s role on the night his mother and father died in the Nova Scotia mass shooting — and of the force’s potential to reform in the future.

“My trust for the RCMP is gone,” he said during a recent telephone interview from his home near Mahone Bay, N.S., where he’s been going over the hundreds of hours of testimony heard at a public inquiry into the April 18-19, 2020 rampage.

Alberta Justice Minister Tyler Shandro is calling on the federal government to fire RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki, saying her continued tenure is damaging to the national police force.

In a statement Wednesday, Shandro calls on Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino to immediately rescind Lucki’s appointment.

“Alberta has lost confidence” in Lucki, Shandro said in the statement.