GUELPH OFFICER CHARGED WITH DISCREDITABLE CONDUCT

Earlier this month the Waterloo Region Record carried a story titled "Guelph city police officer charged with discreditable conduct". At first blush I felt that this was an appropriate route of action for the Guelph Service to take but in hindsight I'm less sure. As I read the article a sister of an accused in a local murder made some comments on facebook that may have been disrespectful of the murder victim. Meanwhile the murder victim had been discovered at home by an off-duty Guelph police officer. She was a cousin of the officer's wife.

Shortly afterwards the police officer left some sort of phone message on the phone, allegedly "uncivil" and possibly rude, for the sister of the accused who had died the same day as the murder however in a car accident. For his phone message the officer has been charged with discreditable conduct.

Wow this is a difficult one. Clearly both the sister of the accused and the husband of the murder victim's cousin have different ideas about the people involved. With both a murder and another death involved it is hardly surprising that emotions were high and possibly common sense a little lower. If the off-duty police officer had been anyone other than a police officer I seriously doubt that police or any other authorities would have gotten involved. It does not appear that threats were involved.

Is this a case of a police officer behaving unprofessionally while off duty albeit while under significant personal stress? Is it appropriate to charge him with discreditable conduct under those circumstances? Waterloo Regional Police had decided that criminal charges were inappropriate. Seems a little severe to me.