Officer’s disciplinary hearing paints picture of toxic work situation

EDMONTON A police constable accused of bullying a civilian 911 dispatcher and then lying about it told a disciplinary hearing that she shunned the co-worker because the woman was spreading rumours about her.

Const. Fiona Moffat took the stand on the second day of an Edmonton police professional standards branch (PSB) hearing Tuesday. The 21-year police veteran on Monday pleaded guilty to a charge of discreditable conduct under the Police Act for using “derogatory” language when speaking to co-workers about Romaine Fleck-Brezinski, a former 911 dispatcher.

Moffat, who appeared at the hearing in uniform, also pleaded guilty to two counts of deceit for providing incomplete information on two written questions that were part of a PSB harassment investigation in February 2016. Moffat faces another nine counts of deceit related to her responses to the questions, as well as a charge of insubordination.

“I was angry I was being involved in this investigation,” Moffat said in response to presenting officer Geoff Crowe’s examination of her “curt” answers to the PSB’s harassment-related questions.

The investigation began after Fleck-Brezinski filed a formal complaint with the PSB about Moffat’s behaviour. The two worked in the police service’s dispatch and evaluations unit.

Moffat said she made a point of ignoring Fleck-Brezinski after a squad mate told her Fleck-Brezinski was spreading rumours about Moffat’s personal life.

“I decided I would cut that person basically out of my life,” Moffat told the hearing.

She said she began to avoid Fleck-Brezinski, turning her back on her when she entered the room and even using a different washroom to avoid her.

Crowe questioned Moffat about whether she spoke to FleckBrezinski about the rumours, or whether she brought them to her supervisor or the other constable. Moffat said no.

Crowe suggested Moffat made up the rumour to justify how she was treating Fleck-Brezinski, and that she hoped her other co-workers would ostracize her. Moffat denied it.

Another question dealt with whether Moffat had used vulgar terms to describe Fleck-Brezinski to other co-workers, in particular “b--ch” and “c---.”

Moffat said she originally answered no because she was “upset and angry” when she realized she was the subject of a PSB complaint. She said she was being “curt” and wrote no “in hopes it would all go away.”

Moffat later acknowledged she used both terms to refer to FleckBrezinski on several occasions, including in emails to other coworkers.

Crowe also questioned Moffat about a 2014 “incident” involving window blinds.

At the time, Moffat had a confrontation with a superior officer over a set of interior blinds between two sections of the police dispatch and evaluation office.

Moffat had closed the blinds after her sergeant opened them. She claimed this was because she was working on confidential material, and that Fleck-Brezinski had a habit of posting “inappropriate things related to work” on Facebook. When the male sergeant pressed for more information, Moffat said she “stormed off.”

Crowe suggested the incident with the blinds stemmed from Moffat’s desire to “p--- off or annoy” Fleck-Brezinski.

A staff sergeant later removed the blinds. The hearing is scheduled to continue Wednesday.

I decided I would cut that person basically out of my life.