West Van cop guilty of assault keeps job

[grumpydigger]

The young West Vancouver cop who shocked the public with an unprovoked assault of a newspaper delivery man in January 2009 will not be fired.

On Friday at the public hearing into the actions of Const. Griffin Gillan, police complaints adjudicator Harry Boyle had the power to end Gillan’s policing career. But Boyle accepted a joint-proposal for lighter punishment including a 30-day suspension and one-year demotion, made by public hearing counsel Michael Tammen and Gillan’s lawyer David Butcher.

Gillan, 24 at the time, attacked newspaper carrier Firoz Khan outside of the Hyatt in downtown Vancouver after a binge drinking session with two fellow police officers.

Gillan guessed he’d had about 25 drinks that night. While assaulting Khan he called for backup, presented himself as a police officer and continued the assault after the other off-duty cops arrived in a taxicab.

During the public hearing Gillan said he hardly remembered the night, was “embarrassed and baffled” at his actions, and wanted to regain public trust.

Boyle accepted evidence that Gillan is essentially a well-liked and conscientious professional — who had wanted to be a cop from the age of five — that committed an “uncharacteristic” act.

In an emotional moment, Gillan, with his parents, sister and fiancé seated behind him, said “Thank you” to Boyle, and bowed his head.

“There is a good person behind what you did,” Boyle told Gillan. “What you did was terrible, but you are a good person.”

Gillan pleaded guilty to assault of Khan in July 2009 and received a 21-day conditional sentence plus six months probation. New Westminster Const. Jeffrey Klassen was found guilty of assault this year, and given a conditional discharge.

A professional standards investigation by WVPD Staff-Sgt. Paul Skelton had recommended Gillan be dismissed. But in key testimony during the public hearing, Skelton said that Gillan had taken full responsibility for his actions and was redeemable.

“If due process finds he is reinstated, I have no problem with him working on my patrol shift,” Skelton said in January 2011.

At the hearing Friday interesting details came out about the 11-month unpaid suspension Gillan was handed by former West Vancouver police chief Kash Heed.

The punishment was unusual under the Police Act, both Butcher and Tammen said.

And the extraordinary broadcasting of Heed’s disciplinary meeting with Gillan — filmed by Global TV through Heed’s office window — seemed to be politically motivated, Butcher said.

“It would appear this incident was used by those who were seeking to have this man elected,” Butcher said in court Friday. “And that in my submission is wrong.”

Butcher submitted a statement by Vancouver police union head Tom Stamatakis, which suggested chairs were arranged and blinds were left open to allow TV to access the Heed meeting, which was broadcast locally and nationally.

“This obvious and blatant setup is despicable,” Stamatakis wrote.

Butcher presented subsequent emails from a Heed subordinate to Stamatakis.

“I am the person responsible for . . . Gillan being filmed . . . Mr. Heed had nothing to do with it,” one email from an officer said.

Butcher read out a June 2010 email from Heed’s provincial election campaign director Barinder Sall to the reporter involved in the Heed-Gillan meeting story, Global TV’s Catherine Urquart, which was released under an RCMP warrant.

“You were like the communications director . . . your stories, coverage and timing gave Kash a lot of profile and built him a following from day 1,” the email said.

Butcher said that the proposed suspension and demotion that Boyle accepted would cost Gillan about $20,000, and he had already lost about $70,000 in pay from suspensions and lost work opportunities stemming from his assault.

Read more: http://www.theprovince.com/West+guilty+ ... z1WCF9v5BX

[grumpydigger]

30-day suspension and one-year demotion,

The man he attacked, we'll have to live with his injuries for the rest of his life.

But this fine upstanding hero can get away with drunkenly And racially attacking A unarmed man delivering papers....... The only way These police departments will start regaining respect from the people Is if they fire these people immediately And they do the same jail time as any other criminal

[Mr. Personality]

Where does it say racially motivated?

[goatboy]

It's not the police department that would give him jail time, that would be the courts. No other person would have received jail time for this assault. Now, as far as him keeping his job.................

[grumpydigger]

Where does it say racially motivated?

If you remember the case. There were Witnesses Who said he was shouting , We don't like brown people like you around here.......

You see this is how the system works,They drag out the case So 90% of the people Forget about what The facts were surrounding it.

[grumpydigger]

It's not the police department that would give him jail time, that would be the courts. No other person would have received jail time for this assault. Now, as far as him keeping his job.................

So you believe people don't get jail time for vicious assaults

What do you think this guy's going to get http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-c ... rrest.html

Remember this cop also stole the cell phone from this newspaperman.

This arrogant punk,should've been fired and done time for viciously assaulting this man

[grumpydigger]

It is insulting how many of you people want justice and people to serve prison time for their criminal actions.

Unless of course the criminal actions are carried out by your arrogant-hero punk's.

[goatboy]

It's not the police department that would give him jail time, that would be the courts. No other person would have received jail time for this assault. Now, as far as him keeping his job.................

So you believe people don't get jail time for vicious assaults

Unfortunately, with no prior criminal record, no they don't.

[goatboy]

It is insulting how many of you people want justice and people to serve prison time for their criminal actions.

Unless of course the criminal actions are carried out by your arrogant-hero punk's.

Where did this come from. Who has said anything close to this? Please quote ANYONE who said this?

[Mr. Personality]

Yeah, even I can't defend GD here.
Though IF the bit about brown people was actually said I would hope he would be dismissed right away. Drunk or not, you're only going to shout that if you have some deep seeded feelings about the topic.
You can hide it for awhile, but sooner or later it's going to come out. I will say, a drunken beating alone should probably be grounds for dismissal.

[fvkasm2x]

Where does it say racially motivated?

It doesn't. This is one of the examples we are talking about where GD lies, twists the truth or embellishes to suit his needs.

I read the story and was instantly appalled that this cop kept his job. Then I scroll down and my anger turns to GD instead, because of his lie.

I went back to read several 2009 news reports of the incident. Several of them state this:

When the two other police officers arrived, witnesses described seeing Klassen on Khan’s back, punching him in the back of the head and yelling, “Stay down or I will kill you,” said Keefer. Witnesses saw Gillan kicking Khan in the ribs at the same time.

Keefer said Khan is adamant that while he was on the ground, one of the three police officers said, “We don’t like brown people.” Keefer added that Khan didn’t know who made the comment.

1. Khan said it was racially motivated, not other witnesses. Nobody else heard it.

2. ONE of the three officers said it (allegedly). That doesn't mean Gillan said it. If it was actually said, it could have been any of the 3 idiots involved in the assault.

[Captain Awesome]

Disappointing. The officer should have lost his job.

[Mr. Personality]

Where does it say racially motivated?

It doesn't. This is one of the examples we are talking about where GD...

yeah, yeah