<div dir="ltr">
<div class="gmail-wrap12 gmail-story-head" id="gmail-content" tabindex="0"><div class="gmail-colfull">
<div class="gmail-story-headline">
<h1 class="gmail-story-title">Fredericton police broke language and conduct rules, investigation finds</h1>
</div>
<h3 class="gmail-story-deck">Traffic stop complaint to N.B. Police Commission results in 2 officers being disciplined, 3 recommendations</h3>
<p class="gmail-small gmail-lighttext">
<span class="gmail-spaced">By Bobbi-Jean MacKinnon, <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/cbc-news-online-news-staff-list-1.1294364">CBC News</a></span>
<span class="gmail-delimited">Posted: Feb 01, 2018 7:52 PM AT</span>
<span>Last Updated: Feb 01, 2018 7:52 PM AT</span>
</p>
</div> </div>
<div class="gmail-wrap8 gmail-story-primary">
<div id="gmail-leadmedia" class="gmail-story-leadmedia gmail-col8">
<div class="gmail-figure">
<img src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.4147239.1496759828!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/16x9_620/leanne-fitch.jpg" alt="Fredericton police Chief Leanne Fitch said additional resources will be allocated to provide some French training, but she believes current proficiency levels reflect the city's population." title="" width="100%" height="349"> <p class="gmail-figure-caption">
Fredericton police Chief Leanne Fitch said additional
resources will be allocated to provide some French training, but she
believes current proficiency levels reflect the city's population. (CBC)
</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="gmail-wrap8 gmail-story-bodywrapper gmail-sclt-storybody">
<div class="gmail-story-middle gmail-col2" id="gmail-sharecount_gig_containerParent">
<div id="gmail-sharecount" class="gmail-sclt-share" style="visibility: visible;"><div class="gmail-gig-bar-container gmail-gig-share-bar-container" id="gmail-yui_3_11_0_1_1517585300464_15"><table id="gmail-yui_3_11_0_1_1517585300464_17" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td><div id="gmail-totalshares" class="gmail-gig-button-container">285 shares</div></td></tr><tr><td style=""><div class="gmail-gig-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-facebook gmail-gig-button-container-count-none gmail-gig-share-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-vertical gmail-gig-share-button-container-vertical"><div class="gmail-gig-button gmail-gig-share-button gmail-gig-button-up gmail-gig-button-count-none" id="gmail-sharecount-reaction0" title="" alt=""><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction0-left"></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction0-icon" style="vertical-align:middle;text-align:left;background-repeat:repeat-x"><img id="gmail-sharecount-reaction0-icon_img" src="http://www.cbc.ca/i/img/theme/default/facebook-up.png" alt=""></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction0-text" style="vertical-align:middle;background-repeat:repeat-x"><div class="gmail-gig-button-text gmail-gig-share-button-text">Facebook</div></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction0-right"></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></td></tr><tr><td style=""><div class="gmail-gig-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-twitter gmail-gig-button-container-count-none gmail-gig-share-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-vertical gmail-gig-share-button-container-vertical"><div class="gmail-gig-button gmail-gig-share-button gmail-gig-button-up gmail-gig-button-count-none" id="gmail-sharecount-reaction1" title="" alt=""><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction1-left"></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction1-icon" style="vertical-align:middle;text-align:left;background-repeat:repeat-x"><img id="gmail-sharecount-reaction1-icon_img" src="http://www.cbc.ca/i/img/theme/default/twitter-up.png" alt=""></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction1-text" style="vertical-align:middle;background-repeat:repeat-x"><div class="gmail-gig-button-text gmail-gig-share-button-text">Twitter</div></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction1-right"></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></td></tr><tr><td style=""><div class="gmail-gig-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-reddit gmail-gig-button-container-count-none gmail-gig-share-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-vertical gmail-gig-share-button-container-vertical"><div class="gmail-gig-button gmail-gig-share-button gmail-gig-button-up gmail-gig-button-count-none" id="gmail-sharecount-reaction2" title="" alt=""><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction2-left"></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction2-icon" style="vertical-align:middle;text-align:left;background-repeat:repeat-x"><img id="gmail-sharecount-reaction2-icon_img" src="http://www.cbc.ca/i/img/theme/default/reddit-up.png" alt=""></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction2-text" style="vertical-align:middle;background-repeat:repeat-x"><div class="gmail-gig-button-text gmail-gig-share-button-text">Reddit</div></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction2-right"></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></td></tr><tr><td style=""><div class="gmail-gig-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-googleplus gmail-gig-button-container-count-none gmail-gig-share-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-vertical gmail-gig-share-button-container-vertical"><div class="gmail-gig-button gmail-gig-share-button gmail-gig-button-up gmail-gig-button-count-none" id="gmail-sharecount-reaction3" title="" alt=""><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction3-left"></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction3-icon" style="vertical-align:middle;text-align:left;background-repeat:repeat-x"><img id="gmail-sharecount-reaction3-icon_img" src="http://www.cbc.ca/i/img/theme/default/plus-up.png" alt=""></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction3-text" style="vertical-align:middle;background-repeat:repeat-x"><div class="gmail-gig-button-text gmail-gig-share-button-text">Google</div></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction3-right"></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></td></tr><tr><td style=""><div class="gmail-gig-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-share gmail-gig-button-container-count-none gmail-gig-share-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-vertical gmail-gig-share-button-container-vertical"><div class="gmail-gig-button gmail-gig-share-button gmail-gig-button-up gmail-gig-button-count-none" id="gmail-sharecount-reaction4" title="" alt=""><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction4-left"></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction4-icon" style="vertical-align:middle;text-align:left;background-repeat:repeat-x"><img id="gmail-sharecount-reaction4-icon_img" src="http://www.cbc.ca/i/img/theme/default/share-up.png" alt=""></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction4-text" style="vertical-align:middle;background-repeat:repeat-x"><div class="gmail-gig-button-text gmail-gig-share-button-text">Share</div></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction4-right"></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></td></tr><tr><td style=""><div class="gmail-gig-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-email gmail-gig-button-container-count-none gmail-gig-share-button-container gmail-gig-button-container-vertical gmail-gig-share-button-container-vertical"><div class="gmail-gig-button gmail-gig-share-button gmail-gig-button-up gmail-gig-button-count-none" id="gmail-sharecount-reaction5" title="" alt=""><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody><tr><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction5-left"></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction5-icon" style="vertical-align:middle;text-align:left;background-repeat:repeat-x"><img id="gmail-sharecount-reaction5-icon_img" src="http://www.cbc.ca/i/img/theme/default/email-up.png" alt=""></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction5-text" style="vertical-align:middle;background-repeat:repeat-x"><div class="gmail-gig-button-text gmail-gig-share-button-text">Email</div></td><td id="gmail-sharecount-reaction5-right"></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div>
<div class="gmail-story-relatedlinks gmail-module gmail-sclt-relatedlinks">
<div class="gmail-story-relatedlinks-body gmail-module-body">
<div class="gmail-story-relatedlinks-submodule gmail-story-internallinks gmail-module">
<h3 class="gmail-story-internallinks-head gmail-story-internallinks-heading gmail-module-head gmail-module-heading">Related Stories</h3>
<div class="gmail-story-internallinks-body gmail-module-body">
<ul class="gmail-story-internallinks-list">
<li> <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/language-fredericton-police-moving-1.4318621">
Fredericton police moving in 'right direction' on language, says deputy chief </a>
</li>
<li> <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/language-commissioner-official-languages-katherine-d-entremont-fredericton-1.4312888">
Commissioner questions Fredericton police force's capacity to serve in 2 languages </a>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="gmail-story-body">
<div class="gmail-story-content">
<p>A complaint filed against the Fredericton Police Force over
the way two officers responded to a request for service in French during
a traffic stop last summer has resulted in disciplinary action and
three recommended changes.</p>
<p>An investigation by the New Brunswick Police Commission found the two
officers did not comply fully with the province's Official Languages
Act or with the force's language policies and procedures.</p>
<p>"The Fredericton Police Force takes the findings of the commission's
investigative report very seriously," Chief Leanne Fitch said in a
statement Thursday.</p>
<p>"We will continue to make improvements to address a number of recommendations outlined in the report."</p>
<p>Katherine d'Entremont, the commissioner of official languages, could not immediately be reached for comment.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/police-commission-landry-investigate-fredericton-officer-complaint-1.4216238"><strong>Aldéa Landry to investigate language-related complaint against Fredericton police</strong></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/nb-passenger-account-traffic-stop-complaint-fredericton-police-1.4201395"><strong>'We were shaking': Passenger explains complaint against Fredericton police</strong></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/police-commission-investigate-language-complaint-fredericton-police-1.4195604"><strong>Police commission to investigate language complaint against Fredericton police</strong></a></li>
</ul>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>The complaint was filed June 13 by two women who said they had
received unprofessional and intimidating treatment after their car was
pulled over by police on Smythe Street on June 11.</p>
<p>In an interview with CBC News in July, the passenger said the driver
told police she did not speak English and would need to be addressed in
French, which was her right.</p>
<p>The first two police officers who came to the car, however, would
speak only in English, the passenger said, and one of them told her he
was sure she, too, spoke English.</p>
<div class="gmail-figure">
<img src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.3634546.1510697901!/fileImage/httpImage/image.JPG_gen/derivatives/original_620/fredericton-police-cruiser.JPG" alt="Fredericton police cruiser" width="100%">
<p class="gmail-figure-caption">The names of the two officers involved will
not be released and details of their settlement agreement are also
confidential. (Daniel McHardie/CBC)</p>
</div>
<p>Eventually, a third officer, who was bilingual, arrived to handle
the traffic stop. The driver was issued tickets for an expired
registration and failure to produce proof of insurance.</p>
<p>The complaint contained seven allegations, but only two were upheld, said Fitch, without elaborating.</p>
<p>The New Brunswick Police Commission investigated a conduct complaint
against the two officers and a service complaint against the force under
two sections of the New Brunswick Police Act, according to executive
director Steve Roberge.</p>
<p>"There were indeed disciplinary processes" against the two officers, confirmed Roberge.</p>
<p>But he said he could not release the names of the officers, the
nature of their conduct or details about the disciplinary action because
the matter did not proceed to a public arbitration hearing.</p>
<p>Fitch said the officers had to attend a settlement conference, but settlement agreements are confidential under the Police Act.</p>
<p>"We acknowledge that traffic stops can be challenging," she said.
"Officers must consider a number of variables with each encounter to
ensure the public and officer safety."</p>
<div class="gmail-figure">
<img src="https://i.cbc.ca/1.3330618.1461012135!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_620/hi-steve-roberge.jpg" alt="hi-steve-roberge" width="100%">
<p class="gmail-figure-caption">Steve Roberge, executive director of the New
Brunswick Police Commission, said it's up to the minister of Justice and
Public Safety to ensure the recommendations are complied with. (CBC)</p>
</div>
<p>With respect to the service complaint against the force, the
commission's investigator, former deputy premier Aldéa Landry,
recommended that:</p>
<ul>
<li>The wording of the pocket translator, in consultation with the
Department of Public Safety, be enhanced to cover an officer asking a
driver to produce their licence, registration and proof of insurance.</li>
<li>Refresher sessions be given at least once a year to all
non-bilingual police officers to remind them of their obligations under
the Official Languages Act and the force's language policy.</li>
<li>The Fredericton Police Force ensure there is at least one bilingual
officer available at all times to provide service in the language
choice of members of the public, within a reasonable time.</li>
</ul>
<p>Roberge said it's up to Justice and Public Safety Minister Denis
Landry to ensure the recommendations are complied with. The department
did not immediately respond to a request for comment.</p>
<p>Fitch said it's "a constant challenge" for the force to balance
providing public safety services while also complying with the Official
Languages Act.</p>
<p>But "additional resources will be allocated" to provide some French language training for officers and staff.</p>
<h2>26% of 'staff' know some French</h2>
<p>As it stands, about 26 per cent of "staff" have some capability in
French, ranging from basic up to French being their first language,
according to oral testing conducted last summer, said Fitch.</p>
<p>She did not provide the proficiency levels for officers alone.</p>
<p>"We feel this reflects the city's population and needs, which
according to Statistics Canada, in Fredericton 75 per cent speak English
only, and 24 per cent are bilingual or French-speaking only," Fitch
said. "The last one per cent is neither English nor French.</p>
<p>"Our numbers/ratio reflect well in terms of per cent French and English provincially.</p>
<p>She also said training is a constant process in the department, and language training is part of professional development. </p>
<h2>Bilingualism can't be 'prerequisite'</h2>
<p></p>
<p>All job postings now list bilingualism as a "preference and an asset," said Fitch.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>"We can't narrow it to 'prerequisite' because the pool of interested qualified candidates would be too small," she said.</p>
<p>For the past several years, all officers have been trained to provide
the required "active offer" of serving citizens in the language of
their choice and have been issued pocket translator cards.</p>
<p>The force continues to inform its members about the importance of "formulating the active offer," said Fitch.</p></div></div></div></div>
<br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature">=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+<br><br> Harold F. Schiffman<br><br>Professor Emeritus of <br> Dravidian Linguistics and Culture <br>Dept. of South Asia Studies <br>University of Pennsylvania<br>Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305<br><br>Phone: (215) 898-7475<br>Fax: (215) 573-2138 <br><br>Email: <a href="mailto:haroldfs@gmail.com" target="_blank">haroldfs@gmail.com</a><br><a href="http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/" target="_blank">http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/</a> <br><br>-------------------------------------------------</div>
</div>