National

B.C. RCMP conduct hearing delayed over disclosure issues, possible publication ban

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 12 Mar, 2025 02:17 PM

An RCMP code of conduct hearing that could see three Mounties from Coquitlam, B.C., lose their jobs has been delayed until Thursday over disclosure issues and a possible publication ban.

The hearing in Surrey, B.C., was to begin with the testimony of a female officer who lawyers for the conduct hearing said would testify that Const. Ian Solven "outright lied" during his testimony at the hearing earlier this week.

Constables Solven, Mersad Mesbah and Philip Dick face allegations of discreditable conduct and workplace harassment over racist, homophobic and other derogatory messages made in police group chats on personal phones and over RCMP data terminals, which they deny.

John MacLaughlan, a lawyer for the RCMP conduct authority, says the officer scheduled to testify and others who were the subjects of derisive comments in the group chats need time to get independent legal advice and help from their union.

MacLaughlan told the conduct board that the proceedings should remain open to the public to the "greatest extent possible" because of the significant public interest involved, but he would not oppose a publication ban on alleged victims' names.

Brad Kielmann, Solven's lawyer, says he needed disclosure of the female officer's own private communications about the hearing, including Instagram messages, because they could be "highly relevant."

Prev Next

MORE National ARTICLES

Suspect in deadly Vancouver stranger attacks was on probation: VPD chief

Chief Constable Adam Palmer says the suspect, a 34-year-old White Rock man, appears to be "very troubled" and police are looking into whether mental health was a factor in this morning's "horrific" attacks. He says the man, who had a history of assaulting police and social workers, was tracked down with the help of a drone and arrested at Habitat Island, near the Olympic Village.

Suspect in deadly Vancouver stranger attacks was on probation: VPD chief

Review of B.C. refinery stench says cold snap triggered series of events

Parkland Corp. has released a review into an unplanned shutdown of its Burnaby, B.C., refinery in January that blanketed parts of Metro Vancouver with a foul stench. The review released last week says unusually cold weather triggered a series of events leading to the release of a noxious odour that generated more than 100 complaints from residents.

Review of B.C. refinery stench says cold snap triggered series of events

Man sentenced in child pornography

A New Westminster man has been sentenced to 10 months in jail after pleading guilty to possession child pornography. Police say 51-year-old Scott Harrison was originally arrested in April 2020 after officers begun investigating a case of child porn being uploaded onto the Internet.

Man sentenced in child pornography

VPD says one man dead, another's hand cut off, in stranger attacks

Vancouver police say a man has been arrested after a pair of "unprovoked stranger attacks" in the city's downtown that left one man dead and severed another victim's hand. Chief Constable Adam Palmer says police believe the early morning attacks near the Queen Elizabeth Theatre were "completely random," and that such incidents "shake our collective sense of comfort and safety."

VPD says one man dead, another's hand cut off, in stranger attacks

'The deal is done:' NDP Leader pulls out of supply and confidence deal with Liberals

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has "ripped up" the supply and confidence deal with the Liberals that helped keep the minority government in power. In a video posted Wednesday afternoon, Singh said he notified Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of the decision.

'The deal is done:' NDP Leader pulls out of supply and confidence deal with Liberals

Two men dead after small plane crashes at northern Alberta airport

Mounties say two men are dead after a small plane crashed at an airport in a northwestern Alberta. The plane went down Tuesday on the grounds of the Peace River Airport. RCMP say a 30-year-old man who had been living Manning, Alta., and a 27-year-old resident of Australia died at the scene.