Sault police have the right to keep officer discipline private, commission rules

The Sault Ste. Marie Police Service headquarters in winter. (Mike McDonald/CTV Northern Ontario)

The public doesn’t have the right to know how many police officers in the Sault have been disciplined, Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commission has ruled.

The commission was hearing an appeal of a freedom of information (FOI) request from a member of the public.

The person making the request wanted to know the number of times officers in the Sault were disciplined each month between January 2015 and April 2021.

They argued that Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act allowed them access to the information because it is in the public interest.

In response, police said those details are protected because that sort of labour relations information is private. An appeal was launched based on provisions of the Act that allow such information to be disclosed if it’s in the public interest.

Further, the appeal argued that only statistics would be released, not information on individual cases.

“It does not contain information such as the name of the individual disciplined, their rank (if applicable), or the nature of the disciplined conduct,” said the decision from the privacy commission.

But police argued that under the Act, details of “meetings, consultations, discussions or communications about labour relations or employment-related matters in which the institution has an interest” don’t have to be disclosed.

In its decision, the commission said that previous rulings have said that disciplinary measures are covered under the “labour relations or employment-related matters” section of the Act.

Police also argued that the fact an officer has been disciplined doesn’t mean they have done something wrong involving the public.

“Internal” discipline is not necessarily related to a complaint by a member of the public,” the decision said.

ASKED FOR STATISTICS ONLY

“It can be initiated by a co-worker, supervisor, human resources, or senior levels of the institution. It is related to the rules, policies, and standards of the institution. Internal discipline and its measures also do not relate solely to the police officers in this establishment but also its civilian members who work in administrative and/or operational roles.”

But the person seeking the records argued they were only seeking cold statistics, not details about individual cases. And, they argued, there is a clear public interest.

“The appellant submits that given the extraordinary powers granted to police services across Canada, the public is justified in advocating for robust oversight, accountability, and transparency through the disclosure of information like the information at issue in this appeal,” the decision said.

“The appellant submits that public debates about policing and reform efforts demonstrate that there is attention paid to police misconduct in Ontario and that there is a vital public interest at stake in policing more broadly. Therefore, public scrutiny is not just warranted in the name of public interest and government accountability. It is absolutely essential to maintain the esteem and trust invested in the institution of policing in Ontario.”

In its decision, the commission ruled that discipline records are, by their nature, related to employee-related matters that police have an interest. Therefore it qualifies as information police don’t have to release to the public.

“The very subject matter of the record is the number of (Sault police) employees disciplined on a monthly basis, an employment-related matter that relates to (Sault police) workforce,” the decision said.

“I accept that employee discipline is an employment-related matter in which the (Sault police) has an interest.”

Read the full decision here.