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A police officer in Moose Jaw with about 30 years of experience has been dismissed from the service after misconduct allegations spanning years.
Alan Murdock was fired on Wednesday afternoon.
“That was following a number of investigations into allegations of misconduct we’d received over a fairly lengthy period of time,” explained Moose Jaw Police Service Chief Rick Bourassa.
Bourassa referenced Section 60 of the Police Act, which talks about what can be done if an officer is found guilty of a criminal offence or an offence contravening any law, or conducting themselves in a manner making them unsuitable, or it being established that the member is incompetent for service.
However, Bourassa didn’t give any more details on what the allegations referred to.
“Part of the process is that there is an appeal period in which the individual can appeal, and so for me to get into much more detail would not be appropriate at this time,” explained Bourassa.
He also wouldn’t comment on whether the incidents could lead to criminal charges.
If Murdock appeals within 30 days, a hearing officer would be appointed and there could be a hearing, which would be public.
Bourassa said the allegations and potential incidents spanned several years, and investigations were done over a long period of time as well.
When asked why it took so long for Murdock to be dismissed, Bourassa said, “Just with the totality of circumstances, this was the right time to proceed as we did.”
Bourassa said this kind of thing isn’t always public, but he made the choice to do it publicly.
“Sometimes it depends on the circumstances, sometimes it depends on the size of the community. You know, there are a lot of factors, but in this case, to maintain some of our key values of openness and transparency, it was important that we provided the information that we did and no more than that,” said Bourassa.
The Moose Jaw Police Service, in its public release on the firing, made a point of saying Murdock is no longer an officer and is not authorized to engage in police activity.
The service also added in a phone number, 306-694-7600, for people to call if they have any information they think the police should have.
Bourassa said the effect something like this will have on the public’s perception of the police is always a concern; he said public confidence and trust is critical.
“The harm of secrecy far outweighs the harm of openness, and for us to be very open about when things have not gone the way they should, I think it’s important,” he said. “I think the people in our community expect that and deserve that from us.”
Bourassa said he would rather err on the side of openness and transparency when they can.
