Pubdate: Thu, 27 Nov 2003 Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC) Copyright: 2003 The Vancouver Sun Contact: http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477 Authors: Glenn Bohn and Neal Hall, Vancouver Sun DRENNAN SAYS FOUR OFFICERS STILL ON FORCE AFTER CONVICTIONS 'These Aren't Secret Situations,' Says Vancouver Police Spokeswoman Four other Vancouver police officers are still on the force after being convicted of assault, department spokeswoman Anne Drennan said Wednesday. "These aren't secret situations," Drennan said in the wake of assault convictions Monday against six more officers. "These are all stories you covered," she said to reporters. She did not provide names of other convicted. The issue of officers keeping their jobs after being convicted has been raised in the case of the six who pleaded guilty Monday to assaulting three men in Stanley Park last year. The department has said the six will not necessarily lose their jobs, although they face sentencing on their convictions and face departmental disciplinary action. When she was pressed on the issue Tuesday, Drennan abruptly ended a press conference. She said Wednesday disciplinary action was taken in all four previous cases of assault by a police officer. In one case, she said, the officer was demoted in rank for one year. In another case, the officer lost several days' pay. She also said a number of Vancouver police officers convicted of impaired driving remain on the force although she didn't have the exact number. She replied "no" when asked whether any Vancouver officers have been convicted of more serious offences, such as assault causing bodily harm or attempted murder, but still remain on the force. There have been several cases in recent years of officers convicted of assault either on duty or off: Among them: - - Vancouver police Sergeant Steve Fudge was convicted on Nov. 1, 1999, of assaulting his wife in Delta. He was given a conditional discharge and put on probation for one year. - - Vancouver police Constable Richard Bernard Kitos received an absolute discharge in 1999 after he admitted assaulting a 16-year-old. The sentence resulted in no criminal record. The court was told the incident stemmed from a gesture Alexandros Zoubos made with his finger as Kitos and another officer drove past the Joyce Street SkyTrain station on Sept. 27, 1997. - - Detective Lou Williams was convicted in 1994 of common assault of a prisoner in the city jail on Sept 24, 1993. He was allowed to return to active duty. - - In 1989, Vancouver police Corporal Brian Nixon was sentenced to a nine-month jail term for the Sept. 30, 1983, assault of Michael Jacobsen, a man with a criminal record for breaking and entering who was arrested by officers "for his own protection" because he was intoxicated in a public place. When he was released the next morning, he was found to have a broken knee that required four bouts of surgery. He sued the city, which settled out of court for more than $60,000. - - Vancouver police Constable Ian McColl was given an absolute discharge in 1987 for assaulting a 13-year-old Province newspaper carrier, who had ducked behind a Surrey home. The officer testified the area was plagued by vandalism and property thefts and assumed the boy was attempting to break into the house or van of his neighbour. On Wednesday, Drennan invited Vancouver Police Union president Tom Stamatakis to respond when a reporter asked: "Is there any crime for which a police officer will be automatically dismissed?" Stamatakis said a disciplinary authority -- normally the police chief - -- would consider the nature of the offence. He said a conviction for crimes such as illegal drug possession or sexual assault would likely mean the officer would lose his job. A sentence that resulted in a legal order that prohibited an officer from carrying a weapon would probably cost an officer his job because he would not be able to perform his duties as an officer, he said. The case this week involved three men who were berated, punched and shoved before being released from custody. The six officers -- Christopher Cronmiller, Raymond Gardner, Duncan Gemmell, James Kenney, Gabriel Kojima and Brandon Steele -- were originally charged with assault, assault with a weapon and obstruction of justice. They pleaded guilty to common assault of Jason Desjardins, 28, Barry Lawrie, 34, and Grant Wilson, 37. The incident took place Jan. 14 in a parking lot in Stanley Park. The officers, who were suspended with pay last Jan. 24, will be sentenced Dec. 16 at Vancouver provincial court. They face a maximum penalty of six months in jail, a fine of $2,000, or both. They will also face disciplinary hearings early next year. Stamatakis said the six officers were lawfully executing their duties when they first came into contact with three suspected drug dealers at Granville Mall. "They transported them out of an area where they were committing crime, disturbing the peace and interfering in the abilities of local businesses to conduct their business," he said. Stamatakis said the "incident" occurred when the suspects were being released in Stanley Park. He rejected a reporter's suggestion that police were in control when the assaults occurred. "The suggestion that this was somehow an orchestrated or planned event is not supported by the statement of facts entered into the courts a couple of days ago," he said. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake