Willow Kinloch appeared outside a courthouse in May of last year after being awarded $60,000 in a lawsuit she filed against Victoria police. (CBC) B.C.'s police complaint commissioner has called a public inquiry into the actions of two Victoria police officers who tied up a drunken 15-year-old girl in a cell for hours four years ago.
Stan Lowe said Monday he has decided it is in the public interest to hold the hearing, even though a police investigation conducted by Vancouver police and Victoria Police Chief Jamie Graham found allegations of improper conduct against the two officers were unsubstantiated.
Lowe's three-page statement said constables Ryan O'Neill and Brian Asmussen have been accused of committing disciplinary faults under B.C.'s Code of Professional Conduct Regulations вЂ" including abuse of authority and neglect of duty.
Lowe was appointed police complaints commissioner earlier this year.
Willow Kinloch was arrested for being drunk in public in May 2005 and spent several hours in a padded cell.
Video evidence viewed by jurors at a civil trial showed Kinloch, who weighed about 100 pounds, lashed to the cell door with her hands cuffed behind her back and her tethered feet pulled up tight to the floor.
She was awarded $60,000 from the lawsuit, but police and the city appealed and last March they reached an undisclosed out-of-court settlement.
No date has been set for the inquiry, which will examine the allegations of abuse of authority and neglect of duty.
Victoria police call inquiry 'burden'
The Victoria Police Department said Monday it will co-operate with any reviews in the Kinloch matter, but said the case has undergone significant past reviews.
Sgt. Grant Hamilton said the case has already been the subject of a criminal review, an internal investigation, two independent use-of-force reviews and a civil trial.
"The [police complaint commissioner's] decision will unfortunately burden the public with significant legal costs in relation to an incident that occurred over four years ago and has already been thoroughly reviewed," Hamilton said in a statement.
The officers are accused of abuse of authority relating to the jailing of Kinloch and using unnecessary force by applying a restraining device and leaving it in place under circumstances that are abusive and oppressive.
The officers also face two neglect-of-duty allegations that relate to failing to diligently monitor the welfare of Kinloch вЂ" including determining if the continued use of the tether was necessary вЂ" and failing to notify provincial Children and Family Development Ministry officials after police couldn't find Kinloch's parents.
The Victoria Police Department has made several policy and equipment changes since the Kinloch incident, Hamilton said.
The department "has upgraded surveillance camera technology, amended its policies regarding youth in custody and has increased accountability and supervision in the cell area regarding police and civilian employees," he said.
