Top court affirms defendants' right to erased police discipline files

Canada's highest judicial body has determined that people facing charges can obtain previously deleted records of officer wrongdoing to support their defence.

Top court affirms defendants' right to erased police discipline files

In a unanimous judgment, the Supreme Court of Canada has sided with a criminal defendant seeking access to a police officer's cleaned disciplinary history, rejecting arguments advanced by the Edmonton Police Service.

The matter — Edmonton (Police Service) v. McKee — reached the country's highest bench after Alberta's Court of King's Bench ordered disclosure of misconduct information that had technically been wiped from the officer's official personnel file under provincial regulations. The Edmonton force contested that outcome, but seven justices, led by Justice Sheilah Martin, affirmed the lower ruling, notes Canadian Lawyer.

Writing for the panel, Justice Martin stressed that prosecutorial authorities — not police departments themselves — hold the duty to evaluate which conduct records matter to a case and must therefore be shared with the defence. She pointed to long-standing authorities such as Stinchcombe, O'Connor, and McNeil as settled guidance in this area.

The decision further establishes that an accused person's entitlement to mount a full and fair defence can override administrative expungement of officer misconduct, even when privilege questions surface. To assist future cases, the court articulated ten factors to weigh when deciding whether such hidden disciplinary material must be revealed.

The ruling effectively means that simply because a police service has formally cleared an officer's record of past wrongdoing does not shield that history from defendants who can demonstrate its potential relevance to their proceedings.

Source: Google News CA — Crime (EN)