Senior Vancouver police officer dismissed for misconduct
Credit to Author: Tiffany Crawford| Date: Thu, 09 Jan 2020 18:46:11 +0000
A senior Vancouver police officer has been dismissed for misconduct following an inappropriate relationship with a junior Vancouver police officer.
The junior officer, Const. Nicole Chan, died by suicide last January after nine years with the VPD.
The Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner says the investigation, which was conducted by the New Westminster Police Department, has revealed that Sgt. David Van Patten was in an inappropriate relationship with Chan while also serving as a human resources officer for the VPD.
He is one of two Vancouver police officers investigated internally for their relationships with Chan.
Vancouver Police Constable Nicole Chan died by suicide in January 2019.
Chan’s sister, Jenn Chan said her sister complained to the police chief in 2017 about inappropriate relationships with two senior officers. After the complaint, Chan was put on stress leave, and an internal investigation into the two senior officers was launched.
Jenn Chan told Postmedia that she believed the the officers’ conduct played a huge role in contributing to Nicole’s deteriorating mental state, sense of self and self worth.
On Jan. 2, Chief Officer Dave Jones of the Transit Police rendered a discipline decision concluding that three allegations of discreditable conduct were substantiated.
He ordered Van Patten be dismissed from the VPD.
Police officers facing dismissal have an automatic right to request the decision be reviewed by a retired judge through a public hearing, or the police complaint commissioner may order an inquest, though no determination has been made.
Andrea Spindler, deputy police complaint commissioner, said in a statement Thursday that this is “a serious and tragic matter.”
Spindler said no more details would be disclosed at this time.
ticrawford@postmedia.com
-with files from Harrison Mooney
More to come…