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5: Accountability and Investigation

  • Page ID
    32939
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    • 5.1: Autonomy and Accountability
      This page emphasizes the vital need for police autonomy to maintain independence from government and media, while ensuring ethical law enforcement. Officers should remain impartial, avoiding political comments, and accountability mechanisms like prosecutions and reviews are crucial. In British Columbia, police operate under specific statutes, with serious cases often investigated by external agencies for integrity in law enforcement.
    • 5.2: British Columbia’s Police Act
      This page discusses the Police Act in British Columbia, which allows individuals and third parties to file complaints against municipal police officers, ensuring protection for those hesitant to come forward. Complaints may involve misconduct, administrative issues, and disciplinary actions unrelated to public interactions. Common allegations include corruption and breaches of public trust, addressing unethical behavior.
    • 5.3: The Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act
      This page discusses the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, which details disciplinary procedures for the RCMP, including the roles of the External Review Committee and the Public Complaints Commission. It highlights Bill C-42, enacted in June 2013, which established the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission, aimed at improving accountability, transparency, and complaint handling within the RCMP through modernized investigations and enhanced oversight of serious incidents.
    • 5.4: Investigation Models
      This page discusses three models for investigating police misconduct: the dependent model allows police to self-investigate, balancing accessibility and costs with accountability issues; the interdependent model includes civilian oversight for balance but may face police cooperation challenges; and the independent model relies entirely on civilians, improving accountability but potentially lacking understanding of police culture. Each model presents its benefits and drawbacks.
    • 5.5: Independent Investigations Office
      This page discusses the challenges of ensuring accountability in British Columbia's policing, focusing on misconduct investigations under the Police and RCMP Acts. The Police Complaint Commissioner oversees municipal cases, while the Independent Investigation Office (IIO) deals with serious incidents involving police. Concerns are raised about the IIO's independence due to its composition of ex-police and civilians trained in police culture, as they are still governed by the Police Act.
    • 5.6: References


    This page titled 5: Accountability and Investigation is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Henry White (Prince George's Community College) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.