Quebec chief defends arrest of reporter for harassment
Press freedom, victims’ rights need ‘balance’
The police chief of Gatineau, Que., defended the arrest of a reporter for criminal harassment, saying while he respects freedom of the press, a victim has rights too.
“In no circumstance do we wish to interfere with a journalist doing his work or to restrict the freedom of the press,” Mario Harel told a news conference on Friday. “At the same time, I want to stress the importance that the police service gives to the rights of victims.”
A Radio-Canada reporter, Antoine Trépanier, had been trying to interview Yvonne Dubé, executive director of the Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Outaouais region in western Quebec. He was writing a story saying that she had presented herself as a lawyer when in fact she had served as a law clerk. The investigation involved an April 2015 Ontario court decision that said Dubé falsely passed herself off as a lawyer between September 2011 and March 2012.
Radio-Canada, CBC’s French-language network, said the reporter first contacted Dubé on Monday and spoke to her for 20 minutes. The network said she initially agreed to an oncamera interview before backing out. The reporter then emailed her again Tuesday to ask her to reconsider. The complaint was filed later that day. Police said Thursday evening they had received a complaint from a woman who feared for her safety as a result of threats and repeated communications from a man.
Police arrested Trépanier and released him on a promise to appear in court June 20. He is not permitted to contact Dubé and must notify police of any change in address or employment.
Radio-Canada says Trépanier acted professionally, without harassment.
“We find that his arrest was unfounded, that he was only doing his job and that he fully respected the CBC’s journalistic standards and practices,” Yvan Cloutier, Radio-Canada’s director of French services in Gatineau, said in a statement on the network’s website.
Reporters have rights, Harel agreed Friday, “but we must balance this with the victim’s right to be believed.
“We don’t want to prevent journalists from doing their jobs,” but failing to act on a complaint would make the victim ask questions.
When there is a complaint of harassment, threats or domestic violence “the duty of the police officer is first to believe” the person making the complaints, but at the same time “we don’t believe blindly.”
The chief said that it’s not the duty of police to wait for proof beyond a reasonable doubt. In Quebec, he noted, police decide whether there is enough evidence to pass on to the Crown, and the Crown decides whether to lay charges. The Crown’s office is examining the Trépanier case, Harel said, and as yet no charges have been laid.
The arrest mystifies some experts.
“If that’s all it takes to be charged with criminal harassment, then I guess I’ve criminally harassed hundreds of people over the years,” said Randy Boswell, who teaches journalism at Carleton University. “Because it doesn’t sound like the reporter was doing anything out of the ordinary.
“Unless there is other information that we are not aware of at this time, it seems like the police are being used by a source who simply wants to insulate herself from attention.”
Stephane Giroux, head of the Quebec journalists’ federation called the arrest “extremely worrying” and noted it was based solely on a single complaint without investigation.
Postmedia News tried once to contact Dubé but has not had a reply.