An Ottawa police detective has been demoted for two years for accessing files in infant death cases for which she had no investigative role. Det. Helen Grus was found guilty of discreditable conduct under the Police Services Act in March 2025. On Tuesday, the hearing officer, Supt. (retired) Chris Renwick, ruled Grus will be demoted from first-class constable to second-class constable for 24 months. Grus, a 23-year member of the Ottawa Police Service, was charged with one count of discreditable conduct in 2022. Grus was accused of accessing the records management system (RMS) files of nine infant or child death cases in which she had no investigative role or responsibility and failed to record her involvement or finding in the files. She was also accused of interfering in an investigation of an infant’s death by contacting the father of a deceased baby in January 2022 to inquire about the COVID vaccination status of the mother. Grus told the hearing she suspected there could be a link between COVID-19 vaccinations and a perceived increase in infant deaths in December 2021 and believed further investigation was required to rule out any adverse effects from the vaccine. The defence said that Det. Grus “noticed a doubling or tripling of infant deaths and saw it as her duty to investigate criminal negligence on the part of the government,” according to the initial decision by Renwick in March 2025. In the sentencing ruling, Renwick said Grus’s “conduct was clouded by her personal beliefs and there is a strong public interest in the outcome.” “The sanction must be severe enough to ensure that this type of misconduct is not repeated. Of concern, Det. Grus has failed to recognize her misconduct and is treating this disciplinary process with disdain. She may be a great investigator, but if she cannot be trusted, it will be of little solace to the public.” Renwick said Grus accessed 22 RMS records “outside of her investigative roles and responsibilities but were not specifically used for personal nor shared for personal gain.” The prosecution had asked the hearing officer for a 24-month demotion for Grus to “demonstrate the necessary community trust that the police are taking this misconduct this seriously,” said the report. Defence lawyers for Grus said the officer had already been punished and no further penalty should be imposed. Renwick noted the proceedings generated “much media attention.” “I find that I cannot separate the impact of the media attention from the damage to the reputation of the OPS,” Renwick said. “The public has an expectation that their police service exercises proper and effective oversight and authority over their employees to ensure a bias free approach when undertaking criminal investigations and that any deviation by an employee from this standard be firmly addressed to reinstill the public’s confidence. The families of the nine deceased infants were adversely affected when they were advised of privacy breaches by the OPS. Harm was caused by Det. Grus’s misconduct.” Grus joined the Ottawa Police Service in 2003, and Renwick noted there was no previous disciplinary history during her career. “It is entirely up to Det. Grus on how she will move forward with her career, despite the 24-month demotion imposed,” Renwick said. “I urge Det. Grus to reflect on her actions that have resulted in the finding of misconduct, and to reconcile her relationship with her employer, the OPS.” The two year demotion will cost Grus an estimated $30,000 in pay. According to the report, Grus has been moved to the Robbery Unit.
