Kamloops, B.C. (Canadian Press) – A senior RCMP officer at the Kamloops, detachment says Mountie-bashing seems all too common these days, but the force expects criticism when it comes to the latest incidents.
Inspector Yves Lacasse said Friday that abuse allegations against two officers in separate incidents are hard on members.
Constable Kevin Roy has been suspended with pay over charges he used excessive force during separate arrests of two people.
Constable Ryan Sheremetta has been assigned to desk duties after a fellow officer complained about an off-duty altercation in which Const. Sheremetta is alleged to have punched a man outside a bar.
Const. Sheremetta is the officer who shot and killed a Vanderhoof, B.C., man during a confrontation in a snowy field in December, 2004.
He was never charged and the RCMP complaint commissioner ruled Const. Sheremetta acted in self-defence when he confronted Kevin St. Arnaud, a suspect in a nearby robbery.
Insp. Lacasse told reporters he knows police are held to a higher standard.
“But when you keep on getting bashed on a daily basis, it is tough,” he said.
“Are we going to face more criticism right now, yes we are expecting it,” he said.
Mr. Roy has been with the force just nine months, while Const. Sheremetta has been a Mountie for seven years.
Insp. Lacasse said the charges were laid after an internal RCMP investigation.
On top of assault charges in court, Insp. Lacasse said both members will face an internal RCMP discipline hearing.
Both Mounties are expected to make their first court appearances on July 29.
Last May, then-RCMP complaint commissioner Paul Kennedy ruled that Const. Sheremetta’s use of deadly force in the December, 2004 incident “was justified.”
“Const. Sheremetta shot Mr. St. Arnaud in self-defence after reasonably perceiving that Mr. St. Arnaud posed a threat of grievous bodily harm or death,” Kennedy determined.
But he also found that elements of the RCMP investigation conducted into the death were inadequate, including that the RCMP failed to secure the scene of the crime, resulting in the contamination of the site by other officers.
Public confidence in the RCMP has dived in recent years after several high-profile incidents.
The video of four officers confronting Robert Dziekanski before he died at Vancouver’s airport in 2007 was seen by millions of people around the world.
Most recently, five officers around B.C. have been accused of impaired driving since September.
“We’re proud to wear the uniform that we wear despite all the criticism that we have been getting in recent years,” Insp. Lacasse said. “Some of the criticism that we have received we deserve and we feel that some of the criticism that we have received we don’t deserve.”
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