D.J.D. Sims

The Durham Regional Police Force applied to lift the statutory stay of a penalty ordering the appellant police officer to resign or be dismissed.

The appellant had been suspended with pay for nearly three years and was convicted of criminal offences, including obstruction of justice, as well as Police Act offences for corrupt practice and discreditable conduct.

The Commission exercised its discretion under s. 25 of the Statutory Powers Procedures Act to lift the stay, citing the combination of the lengthy suspension, the serious nature of the criminal convictions striking at the heart of police duties, and the severity of the penalty imposed.

The appellant police association appealed a decision quashing an arbitration award that included a collective agreement clause reimbursing officers for legal expenses incurred from criminal or statutory charges flowing from their duties.

The lower courts held that the clause interfered with the statutory discretion granted to the municipality under s. 24(6) of The Police Act.

The Supreme Court of Canada allowed the appeal, finding that the permissive power to indemnify in s. 24(6) did not preclude the establishment of a collective bargaining regime under s. 29(2) regarding working conditions.