Suspended police chief applies for publication ban on court files
Lawyer to argue identities of people linked to Twitter scandal not relevant to the public
Victoria Police Chief Frank Elsner has applied for a publication ban to protect the identity of a female Saanich police officer with whom he exchanged inappropriate Twitter messages.
Lawyers representing the suspended chief will be in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver on Aug. 29, applying for the ban to protect the identities of the officer and her husband, who is a Victoria police officer under Elsner’s command.
“Neither of those individuals are parties to these proceedings and the judicial review application raises issues of a highly personal nature,” says the notice of application filed by Elsner’s lawyer, Janet Winteringham. “It would be manifestly unfair to drag them into the ‘vortex of litigation.’ ”
Elsner is asking for a publication ban on the content of Twitter messages, which he says were obtained “through an unlawful and unauthorized search” of his Twitter account.
He is also asking for a publication ban on details of an internal investigation completed in November 2015 by lawyer Patricia Gallivan. She was retained by Victoria and Esquimalt mayors Lisa Helps and Barb Desjardins, co-chairs of the police board, after concerns about the socialmedia messages came to light.
Elsner’s application also asks for a sealing order on five affidavits. Three of the affidavits have been written by him. Although they are sworn, they have not been filed.
Finally, Elsner is seeking a ban on his employment contract and the details of the interim decision that placed him on administrative leave. He has also asked for a ban on discipline imposed on Elsner by the mayors. Gallivan concluded there was no physical relationship between Elsner and the female Saanich officer, but their messages were inappropriate.
In December, when the mayors informed the police board about the case, the board expressed confidence in Elsner. A few days later, the media reported on the text messages and Elsner publicly acknowledged them, saying he was humiliated. The police union voted non-confidence in Elsner and raised other concerns about bullying and harassment.
On Dec. 18, Police Complaint Commissioner Stan Lowe relieved the mayors of their disciplinary authority and began a new investigation into the messages on Twitter. The commissioner ordered another investigation into allegations by four female employees of workplace harassment.
In March, Elsner filed a petition in B.C. Supreme Court seeking an order to stop the public trust investigation into the Twitter messages, to prevent a search of his electronic devices and to delete the summation of his case from the OPCC website. Elsner claimed the OPCC had no authority to order an external investigation into conduct that has been the subject of an internal investigation.
In an affidavit, Elsner said his reputation had been “irreparably tarnished” and his career in policing was over, no matter what the investigations revealed.
On April 29, the OPCC ordered a third investigation into allegations Elsner attempted to improperly influence potential witnesses during the internal 2015 Twitter investigation and during the ongoing public trust investigation. The information alleges that Elsner asked a potential witness to make a misleading statement during the internal investigation, and that Elsner sought access to the Victoria police computer server and deleted or attempted to delete emails. It’s also alleged he asked a potential witness to destroy electronic data.