The former director of the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM), Philippe Pichet, calls for a retraction from the mayor Valerie Plante following the remarks she made Monday at a press conference.
In a formal notice sent to the mayor on Tuesday, Philippe Pichet’s lawyer qualifies as “arbitrary, unfair and discriminatory” the words spoken the day before by the mayor on the subject of the mandate of the former director of police.
Asked Monday by a journalist regarding the criticisms of her opponent Denis Coderre on the increase in violent acts in Montreal, Valérie Plante spoke of her coming to power in 2017. “When I arrived at the town hall, I had to change the police chief because the mess was taken, ”she explained. The mayor described Mr. Pichet as “the chief of police chosen by Denis Coderre”, stressing that there were “internal wars and a breach of confidence”. In passing, she said that the investigation of journalistic sources had an impact on the investigative work of the police.
Mr. Pichet’s lawyer believes that the mayor’s remarks suggest that his client was problematic and he deplores that Philippe Pichet never had the opportunity to explain himself. He also accuses the mayor of never having given his public support to Philippe Pichet although he took the time to explain the situation to him and alert him to “the inaction of the Ministry of Public Security” .
He also criticizes Valérie Plante for associating Mr. Pichet with a political choice and for sticking to him the label of a bad manager. “It is more than obvious that your highly defamatory and damaging remarks are the result of sheer ignorance and improvisation on a subject that you clearly do not understand at all. “
He therefore asks the mayor to retract publicly within five days, failing which his client could initiate legal proceedings against her.
let’s remember that Philippe Pichet was appointed director of the SPVM in 2015 to replace Marc Parent. He had been suspended from his duties by the Minister of Public Security, Martin Coiteux, two years later, in the wake of a report by Michel Bouchard showing serious shortcomings within the SPVM, botched investigations and rivalries within the police force. Faced with dismissal, he finally left his post in June 2018.
Last May, Philippe Pichet filed a $ 1.1 million lawsuit against the Quebec government for damages suffered as a result of his suspension in 2017.
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