‘Shameful lesson’
Toronto police officers recorded mocking woman with Down syndrome plead guilty to misconduct
Two Toronto police constables who were recorded mocking a 29-year-old woman with Down syndrome last year have learned a “valuable yet shameful lesson,” a police prosecutor told a disciplinary hearing Tuesday as the officers pleaded guilty to misconduct.
Const. Sasa Sljivo and Const. Matthew Saris have taken responsibility for their actions and apologized in writing to Francie Munoz and her relatives, Insp. Domenic Sinopoli told a room packed with the family’s supporters.
And while the Munoz family had requested a public, inperson apology, “the act of contrition need not be a public spectacle of shame,” Sinopoli said.
“No penalty you administer will be greater than the shame they have suffered,” he told the officer presiding over the hearing. “I see very little need to make an example of these two officers to deter others from doing the same.”
The prosecution and defence jointly proposed that Sljivo, who was the senior officer and the one who made the comments, face five days of unpaid work, and Saris two. Both officers would have to volunteer at least 20 hours with the Special Olympics and undergo an extra hour of sensitivity training.
The hearing officer reserved his decision and no date has been set for its release.
Munoz’s mother Pamela, who filed the complaint against the officers, said the family was disappointed but not surprised by the proposed penalty.
“It’s the police policing the police,” she said.
What’s more, she said, the officers had another opportunity to apologize face-to-face but chose not to do so.
Sljivo pleaded guilty to misconduct related to the use of profane, abusive or insulting language, while Saris pleaded guilty to misconduct related to the failure to report Sljivo’s comments, which contravened the Ontario Human Rights Code.
Neither officer spoke after entering their pleas Tuesday, opting instead to have their lawyer Gary Clewley apologize on their behalf.
“These gentlemen are genuinely sorry,” Clewley said. “This is a regrettable incident. I can tell you it won’t happen again.”
The charges under the Police Services Act stem from an incident that took place in November of last year, and which the officers have called a “lapse in judgment” in a written apology.