Veteran city police officer sworn in as lawyer
Family, police officers and many Saskatoon lawyers filled two Queen’s Bench courtrooms on Thursday to watch Bruce Gordon take his oath of office and become a full-fledged lawyer.
A dedicated husband, father and grandfather, Gordon is known as an elite athlete, for his volunteer work and for his roughly 28 years of service as a decorated member of the city’s police force.
According to a report by CBC Saskatoon, Gordon has been diagnosed with aggressive pancreatic cancer.
After taking his oath at a special ceremony arranged Thursday due to the diagnosis, Gordon thanked the many people in his life who helped make his dream of becoming a lawyer possible. He noted police officers and lawyers have a lot in common.
“The core values of the police service, I’ve had these up on my office walls for years and I tried to follow them every day in my work: Honesty, integrity, compassion, fairness, commitment, respect, professionalism,” he said.
“As I take the oath of office for the Law Society of Saskatchewan, they’re the same core values,” he continued.
Queen’s Bench Chief Justice Martel D. Popescul said Gordon impressed him both as a police officer and while he pursued his education in law after his retirement from the police.
The transformation Gordon underwent was an important one, as there can sometimes be an “uneasy tension” between lawyers and police officers, Popescul said.
“Often, depending upon your perspective, one seems to be getting in the way of the other. Transitions such as yours — from police officer to lawyer — help bridge the gap and demonstrate that we’re all part of a wonderful, complex and functioning system of justice that operates admirably, albeit not perfectly.”
Police Chief Clive Weighill announced the police service’s gymnasium will now be called the Bruce Gordon Physical Fitness Centre.
“You sought the truth as a police officer and I know you’ll seek the truth in your new role,” Weighill said.