Racism lawsuit sparks calls for independent investigation into Repentigny police

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Two organizations are calling for an independent investigation into profiling and other practices within the Repentigny police force following a lawsuit brought by one of its officers.

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Lakay, a nonprofit group that advocates for multiculturalism, and Coalition Rouge issued a joint statement Tuesday calling on the province to investigate the police force, saying there have been numerous worrying incidents of racial discrimination in the past.

They are alarmed by a lawsuit filed by high-ranking officer Daniel Archibald, who was hired in 2013 and rose through the ranks of the police force over the course of several years. The suit alleges that Archibald was investigating why there was a lack of diversity among new hires in the police force and uncovered a scheme where applicants for the job were required to provide copies of their driver’s license along with their applications. As a result, those who appeared black in their photos received no calls. Archibald appealed to higher-ups to change this hiring procedure, but instead was told that he broke a “code of silence”. He proceeded to be subjected to intimidation and threats, and feared for his safety after a criminal broke into his home in 2019 under the orders of another officer, according to the allegations in the lawsuit, which have not been substantiated. the courts.

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Other allegations included police covering up for an officer who had a substance abuse problem.

Archibald is suing the city for covert dismissal and seeking $1.8 million in damages, saying he was bullied on the job. He claims that the force made his work environment so toxic that it was impossible for him to continue in his position. He has been out since last October. Contacted on Wednesday, Archibald’s lawyer, Pierre Éloi Talbot, said he could not comment on the facts of the case as they are before the court.

However, Lakay president Pierre-Richard Thomas said the lawsuit shows there is a need to investigate practices within Repentigny’s police force, which in previous years was notorious for issues of racial discrimination.

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“The Black and Colored community of Repentigny is very concerned,” Thomas said. “If the police bully each other, it goes without saying that they will not hesitate to bully our communities.”

Thomas’s organization has been denouncing profiling within the Repentigny police force for five years and has called on the province on numerous occasions to investigate the force. He said that the force has been found guilty of racial discrimination in the past, and that other complaints of racial discrimination have also been filed against the force, specifically in the case of the shooting of Jean-René Olivier by police last year. .

However, Repentigny’s mayor said the city is “enraged” by the lawsuit and said the allegations are “totally unfounded”.

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Nicolas Dufour said Archibald wants the city to give him a paid release, and the lawsuit is his way of pressuring the city to agree to his demands.

Dufour refuted the allegations, saying the city requires driver’s licenses to ensure officers have the proper permits to drive. He added that the city has hired 22 police officers of color over the years, and the force has 90 officers in total.

“The city of Repentigny will not be taken like this,” he said.

Dufour said the situation is even more concerning considering the force has been making concrete efforts to improve its relations with minority and racialized communities, and to emphasize diversity.

“We’ve made a huge effort in the last eight months and it’s going very well,” Dufour said.

He added that he is frustrated that someone is questioning the city’s efforts for “purely financial reasons, and I find that disgusting.”

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