Playing the Numbers Game

Fredericton's "finest" made the front page of the newspaper, again. More bad PR.This latest round of what appears to be an endless stream of bad publicity for the force is based upon the results of a report compiled by the New Brunswick Police Commission.

The NB Police Commission released an annual report stating it received "129 allegations" 63 of which were directed towards the  Fredericton Police, Miramichi came in second with 18 allegations, and Saint John is in third spot with 16 allegations.

The article goes on to say.....
 "Despite the statistics, Fredericton police Chief Barry MacKnight said the number of complaints is 29 and not 63." and that "the commission is counting multiple allegations contained in single complaints as separate beefs"
McKnight  goes on to say, using a specific complaint for an example, that "allegations were made against three officers with four sections of the Police act identified as possible violations" , "the commission counts that as twelve".  The chief was "gobsmacked when I saw the number", as he should be.

Pierre Beaudoin his organization stands by the numbers in the report. "This year the commission compiled its data by allegations and not per complaint" he said. Beaudoin also added "The number of allegations is correct" The article goes on to say that even if the Chiefs claim that the number is only 29, it still remains the highest in the province. 

If the commission were to use the method described by McKnight, one can only assume that the numbers for Miramichi and Saint John would also be considerably lower than the report suggests. It's almost like the chief is more concerned about the numbers than the actual complaints, not to mention the complainants.

The chief states that 90% of the residents of Fredericton were 'very' satisfied or "somewhat' satisfied with the job being done by the force. What about the 10%? McKnight says that of the '29' complaints, 5 were vaild. 5 out of 29? That sounds like 24 frivolous complaints were filed and dismissed.

Beaudoin pointed out a 'situation involving a repetitious complainer", gee, we all wonder who that could be. Could it be the blogger who was issued a ticket in July for riding a bike on a sidewalk in June, a complaint made by an anonymous third party who wasn't a police officer? Could it be the blogger who was arrested for 'assault' for stepping on the grass of the legislature? Could it be the blogger who was beckoned across the street by an officer and issued a ticket for having no bicycle helmet on, the ticket shoved into his camera and an allegation that the officer raised his knee and made contact with his genitals? Could it be the blogger who was raided and arrested for Criminal Libel under section 301 of the criminal code of Canada and had all of his computer equipment confiscated? The escalation is impressive, yet embarrassing. Embarrassing to the police, and embarrassing to the citizens of Fredericton who deserve better, and expect more than that from a police force.

Fredericton citizens deserve better. They deserve to have a police force that respects them, and they might start to get a little respect in return. Just because someone is wearing the uniform, doesn't mean they will get, nor do they deserve respect from the community. They need to show they are here to 'serve and protect' and they haven't done that lately.


Perhaps Chief McKnight will break down the numbers for us, and tell us which officer had the most complaints, or if he won't release the name, at least reassure people that they are going to remove the officer or officers that is/are tarnishing the rest of the force. McKnight should also share what the allegations are, all 63.


Is anyone else concerned about the criminal libel arrest under section 301 of the criminal code? The  complaint was made by an officer, and all of the witnesses mentioned in the ITO are also police officers? How about that three superior courts of Canada have deemed section 301 unconstitutional? Concerned yet? How about the Canadian Civil Liberties Association also stepping in to question McKnight regarding this arrest/raid/and seizure of property.

Where is Mayor Brad Woodside in all of this? During the Stafford fiasco, in which an officer kneed a man on the spine 4 times and broke a vertebrae in the mans back. (oh but he didn't mean to he said in testimony), Woodside was steadfast that his brave officers were doing a great job and that this was an unfortunate incident. Unfortunate for the man with the broken bones indeed. I believe in the testimony the officer used the words "I was scared".


Even more insulting is Chief McKnight dismissing the fact that there are 63 allegations of misconduct, and trying to package it all into a smaller number. That, along with the fact that he is trying to cling to the 90% "satisfied and somewhat satisfied" people to dismiss the 10% entirely.

McKnight would like to play with numbers rather than deal with the real issue of lack of respect, trust, and confidence among residents. Mayor Woodside also seems to be swimming in denial. Some words of wisdom from the infamous anonymous 12 step program. "admitting you have a problem is the first step to recovery"