HALIFAX - Nova Scotia's justice minister is asking the Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP to investigate how the Mounties handled a woman's call for help before she tried to hire a hit man to kill her husband.

Ross Landry says he's referring the matter to the RCMP watchdog because of calls from the public for an independent review of police actions into Nicole Ryan's case.

The Mounties conducted a review of their actions and concluded that they acted appropriately when fielding her complaints.

Last month, the Supreme Court of Canada ordered a stay of proceedings in the Ryan case, saying it would be unfair to subject her to a new trial on a charge of counselling to commit murder.

Ryan was arrested in 2008 when she tried to hire an undercover Mountie to kill Michael Ryan.