At a news conference this morning, the Lethbridge Police Chief said “only God can judge” if officers on his force are guilty of illegally stalking MLA @SPhillipsAB. 🤯 Really? I thought people judging people was the whole point of the justice system. #AbLeg #abpoli #cdnpoli
He also characterized the illegal surveillance conducted against Phillips as “mistakes.” These are not mistakes! They’re illegal acts!
He also said “this is an individual problem, not an organizational problem. Really? It looks like six officers were involved. And where did they get the impression that this would be okay for them to do in work time. This is not just a few bad apples. It’s a culture problem.
This is why the unions of the Alberta Federation of Labour are calling for a public inquiry. And it’s why we say the officers should be fired if they are found guilty of what they have been alleged to have done. afl.org/afl_calls_for_…
If these officers are only given a slap on the wrist, what message will that send? This time is was a cabinet minister whose politics the officers didn’t like. Next time it could be an environmentalist, a labour activist, a professor, a journalist.
That’s why this story is bigger than Shannon Phillips and this particular set of incidents. Citizens in a democratic society need to have confidence that the apparatus of the state - especially the police - will not be used against them just because of their views and opinions.
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