OTTAWA - A new report is calling for sweeping changes in the way the RCMP investigates its own officers.

Paul Kennedy is chair of the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP. - photo courtesy of the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP

In particular, it says the RCMP should not handle investigations of its own members in cases involving death, serious injury or sexual assault.

The report by the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP says such serious investigations should be referred to an external police force or provincial criminal investigation body.

"As the seriousness of an alleged offence by a (an RCMP officer) increases, the discretion for the RCMP to respond as it deems appropriate must be removed and be replaced by mandatory requirements," said Paul Kennedy, the commission's chairperson.

The report - entitled 'Police Investigating the Police' - was released in Ottawa on Aug. 11. Hans Wiedemann, a former Hay River resident now living in Alberta, can relate.

In 2002, Wiedemann - who at the time was facing a criminal charge for which he was later acquitted - initiated a private prosecution of an RCMP officer for assault, alleging he was pushed out of the RCMP detachment.

His allegation against the officer was initially investigated by another member of the RCMP, who didn't recommend charges.

"Is there justice within our system?" Wiedemann said of the RCMP investigation. "I think there is a system called 'just us'."

His private prosecution against the officer was taken over by the Crown, but the case was eventually stayed.

In its recent report, the complaints commission concluded the overall RCMP approach to investigating members is flawed and inconsistent, and does not create confidence in the transparency and integrity of such investigations.

"We want the RCMP to recognize that the structural and procedural processes, or lack thereof, needlessly place members squarely at risk for a potential conflict of interest," Kennedy said.

Among the problems outlined in the report are a lack of data on the number and seriousness of criminal investigations and charges against RCMP members, along with no national standards, policies or procedures for such investigations.

The report was based on an examination of 28 cases from 2002 to 2007, including two from the NWT.

The NWT cases involved an alleged assault by an officer during the arrest and booking of a civilian and an alleged sexual assault against a young person.

In both cases, no charges were recommended and none were laid.

The report noted that, in all 28 cases, the conduct of the investigating officers was highly professional and appropriate.

However, the commission expressed other concerns.

Twenty-five per cent of primary investigators personally knew the member under investigation, and a lone investigator was assigned in 60 per cent of cases.

The commission believes that creates at least a perceived risk of bias or intimidation, especially when the investigator is of lower rank.

It recommended there be sufficient personal and professional distance between investigators and officers under investigation, and that the primary investigator be at least one rank higher.

The commission rejected the current RCMP policy that investigations of its members be handled like any other investigation, arguing police are held to higher account by the very nature of the work they do.

In a written response to the report, RCMP Commissioner William Elliott said a complete overhaul of the existing investigative model may not be warranted, adding some of the report's proposals may be impractical.

While noting his personal preference would be that RCMP officers never investigate other members, Elliott said there are times when no other agency is in a position to do so, including at the outset of some investigations when immediate action may be required.

Among other things, the report by the complaints commission recommended the creation of a national position of registrar to manage, track, train, promote and advise on RCMP officer investigations; the development of clear national standards for investigations; and the creation of a manual to guide investigations of lesser offences.