In our society, the role of police officers is to maintain peace, order and safety. To fulfill these functions, they have broad powers. But they also have duties and responsibilities. Police officers must follow special rules of conduct. In Quebec, these rules are found in the Code of ethics of Québec police officers (the “code of ethics”). This article explains the duties and rules of conduct of Quebec police officers. It also explains the rights of people who are victims of police misconduct.
What are a police officer’s duties?
Police officers perform several duties, including these:
- maintain peace, order and public safety,
- prevent crime,
- find and arrest criminals,
- conduct criminal investigations,
- ensurethat the law is obeyed.
Who must follow the Code of ethics?
These people must follow code of ethics:
- the Sûreté du Québec (Quebec’s provincial police force), under the authority of the Minister of Public Security,
- municipal police forces that serve specific municipalities, such as the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal or SPVM (Montreal’s police force) and the Service de police de la Ville de Québec or SPVQ (Quebec City’s police force),
- the aboriginal nations police forces who serve aboriginal communities,
- special constables, such as those working in courthouses and at the National Assembly of Québec,
- the highway controllers of the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec SAAQ
- wildlife conservation officers.
Members of the RCMP are not covered by the Code of ethics.
Does the Code of ethics forbid police officers from insulting people based on their ethnic origins?
Yes. Police officers must behave in a way that maintains the public’s confidence and respect. They must not do these things:
- use obscene, blasphemous or insulting language (swearing, insults, etc.),
- act or make negative statements based on race, colour, sex, sexual orientation, religion, political convictions, language, age, social condition, disability, etc.,
- treat a person impolitely or without respect
- forget or refuse to identify themselves with an official document when asked,
- forget to wear the identification required by law (a badge, symbol, uniform, etc.),
- abuse their authority when dealing with the public (threats, harassment, unnecessary force, etc.),
- disobey the law (for example, illegal arrest or detention).
Do police officers on duty who abuse their authority violate the code of ethics?
Yes. For example, a police officer arrests and detains someone knowing that the person didn’t commit a crime. This is an abuse of authority.
To avoid abuse of authority, the code of ethics forbids police officers from doing these things:
- use more force than is necessary,
- threaten, intimidate or harass people,
- intentionally accuse someone without good reason,
- act or speak improperly to obtain a statement or admission,
- detain people, who are not under arrest, to interrogate them.
There are many other forbidden acts related to investigations, handling firearms, detention, searches, etc. To learn more, consult the Code of ethics of Québec police officers.
What can I do if a police officer violated the code of ethics?
A police officer may have to answer for their actions following a complaint or a report. A complaint is made by someone who was a victim or witness of misconduct, while a report can be made by anyone else.
The complaint must be submitted in writing to the Commissaire à la déontologie policière (Police Ethics Commissioner) or at any police station. You must do this within a year of the event in question, or within a year of learning of the event.
If asked, the staff members at the office of the Police Ethics Commissioner must help the complainant prepare the complaint and prove it.
The Police Ethics Commissioner (the “Commissioner”) receives the complaint, examines it and tries to get the people involved to solve the problem.
Where necessary, the Commissioner will investigate and have the police officer appear before the Tribunal administratif de déontologie policière (Administrative Tribunal of Police Ethics, the “Tribunal”) at the date and time fixed by the Tribunal.
The services of the office of the Police Ethics Commissioner are free.
What kinds of complaints are handled by the Commissioner’s office?
A complaint must meet these requirements:
- be in writing,
- be submitted within the time limit (one year),
- deal with a police officer on duty,
- allege a violation of the Code of ethics of Québec police officers.
At this stage, the Commissioner must decide whether to:
- reject the complaint,
- appoint a conciliator,
- refer the case to the appropriate police criminal investigations unit,
- order an investigation to determine if the officer should be brought before the Tribunal.
The Commissioner can reject the complaint, for example, if the complainant refuses to cooperate without a valid reason.
If the Commissioner refuses to investigate, the complainant can ask to have the decision reviewed by the Tribunal, after submitting new facts. The complainant has 15 days after receiving the decision to ask for a revision.
What is conciliation?
The goal of conciliation is to resolve the complaint against the police officer through an agreement between both parties.
Conciliation is not mandatory for the complainant. They can refuse the process but must inform the Commissioner in writing within 30 days of filing the complaint and explain their reasons.
During conciliation, the complainant, the police officer and a conciliator meet. The conciliator cannot be a police officer, or a former police officer. The conciliator must have completed mandatory training on racism and discrimination to be appointed.
Complaints about serious acts, such as causing serious injury or death, don’t go to conciliation. Instead, the Commissioner investigates the complaint.
The goal of conciliation is to find a solution that satisfies both the complainant and the police officer. They are asked to express their points of view freely. The complainant and the police officer can each be accompanied by a person they choose. That person may be a lawyer. The lawyer can intervene, but the conciliator usually prefers to have the complainant and the police officer speak for themselves.
If they reach an agreement, the complaint is resolved. The agreement must be written, approved by the Commissioner, and signed by both the complainant and the officer involved.
If conciliation fails, the conciliator returns the case to the Commissioner for an investigation.
Can statements made by a police officer or a complainant during conciliation be used later?
No. Statements made during conciliation, whether by the complainant or the officer, can’t be used later as evidence in criminal, civil or administrative cases.
What happens when the Commissioner investigates a complaint?
In general, the Commissioner only investigates complaints that haven’t been rejected and that were not resolved through conciliation.
If the Commissioner decides to investigate, an investigator is chosen. The purpose of the investigation is to see if there is enough evidence to have a hearing before the Administrative Tribunal of Police Ethics (the tribunal). The police officer and the complainant are notified of the progress of the investigation.
The investigator’s findings are submitted to the Commissioner in an investigation report.
If the investigation report reveals that the complaint was justified, the Commissioner compels the police officer to go before the Tribunal to answer to the complaint.
If the investigation report states that the complaint is not justified, the complaint is rejected. The Commissioner informs the director of the police force and the complainant of the decision. The Commissioner explains why the complaint was rejected and sends them a summary of the investigation report. The Commissioner also tells the complainant of the right to have the decision revised by the Tribunal.
Finally, the Commissioner can send the investigation report to the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (“the prosecutor”) asking to formally accuse the police officer of a crime.
What happens if the police officer must go before the Administrative Tribunal of Police Ethics?
The Administrative Tribunal of Police Ethics (Tribunal) is a special court that decides whether a police officer has violated the code of ethics. The Tribunal is made up of lawyers named as full-time members by the government, for a maximum of five years.
When the Commissioner finds that a police officer acted improperly, the Tribunal holds a hearing to decide if the finding is justified. The tribunal is made up of lawyers who have been admitted to the Quebec Bar for at least 10 years.
The dispute at the hearing is between the Commissioner and the police officer. The complainant is just a witness.
The Commissioner makes his case against the police officer. Then, the Tribunal must let the police officer defend herself against the complaint.
The Commissioner and the police officer take turns calling witnesses who can testify on matters relating to the complaint.
After considering the evidence, the Tribunal decides whether the police officer violated the code of ethics. The Tribunal decision can be appealed to the Court of Québec.
Anyone can attend Tribunal hearings because they are public.
What action can be taken against a police officer who violated the Code of ethics?
When the Administrative Tribunal of Police Ethics (Tribunal) decides that a police officer’s disobeyed the Code of ethics, it can give the officer one of these penalties:
- a reprimand
- a suspension without pay for up to 60 working days
- a demotion
- firing
For example, the Tribunal found that agent Sauvé used unnecessary force when she used pepper spray on a person who was just walking down the street. Agent Sauvé can be suspended without pay for 20 days.
If the police officer was already fired, quit or retired when the penalty is given, the Tribunal can prevent them from being a peace officer for up to 5 years.
When can there be an independent investigation?
If someone dies, is seriously injured or is injured by a firearm during a police action or arrest, an independent investigation is held. The Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes (office of independent investigations) conducts the investigation and not the Commissioner.
The Bureau also investigates complaints of a police officer committing a crime of a sexual nature while on duty.
The members of the Bureau can’t be active police officers. Also, the Bureau’s director is someone who was never a police officer. But the investigators can be retired police officers.
At the end of the investigation, the Bureau must send a report to the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions who decides whether to formally accuse the police officer of a crime.