C-101 - Conduct

The Appellant has appealed the conduct measures imposed by the Officer in Charge, “[X]” Division, Conduct Authority (Respondent). The Respondent found that the Appellant breached section 2.1 of the RCMP Code of Conduct (Respect and Courtesy) by making inappropriate and sexually explicit comments about his superior. The Respondent’s decision addresses another allegation, which was found not established. In this appeal, the Appellant submits that the conduct measures imposed are clearly unreasonable because the Respondent failed to consider certain mitigating factors, considered an irrelevant aggravating factor, and ultimately imposed disproportionate conduct measures which were not supported by sufficient reasons. The Appellant also submits that the Respondent erred in law by neglecting to place a time limit on one of the conduct measures imposed.

The ERC first found that the Notice of Conduct Meeting sufficiently informed the Appellant of the type of conduct measures that could eventually be imposed by the Respondent. In regards to the mitigating factors, the ERC found that it was sufficient to simply list the aggravating and mitigating factors; there was no obligation on the Respondent to provide an elaborate explanation on the weight afforded to each factor. Overall, it found that the conduct measures were not disproportionate to the misconduct. However, the ERC found that, by not imposing a specific period for the conduct measure relating to long-term acting appointments, the Respondent committed an error of law. The ERC recommended that this conduct measure be rescinded.

The ERC recommends that the appeal be partially allowed.