Johnson Victim of Racial Discrimination, Board Finds

HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION--Johnson Victim of Racial Discrimination, Board Finds

A human rights board of inquiry has ruled Kirk Johnson was the victim of racial discrimination at the hands of Halifax Regional Police and Const. Michael Sanford during a traffic stop in April 1998 in Dartmouth.

Halifax Regional Police Service was held liable for the conduct of its officers because a supervisor at the scene did not follow procedure when he realized a mistake had been made.

The board has awarded Mr. Johnson $10,000 in general damages because of the impact of the incident on his reputation and self- esteem. Mr. Johnson will also receive $4,790 in special damages related to travel he took associated with the human rights complaint. The driver of the vehicle, Mr. Johnson's cousin, Earl Fraser, was awarded $1,000. The parties have 60 days to agree on compensation for Mr. Johnson's legal fees, or chair Phil Girard will make a decision following receiving written submissions.

The full text of the Johnson decision, which was issued on Monday, Dec. 22, is available on the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission's website at www.gov.ns.ca/humanrights.

In April 1998, Mr. Johnson's vehicle was stopped in a parking lot in Dartmouth by Const. Sanford. He ordered the vehicle impounded and gave Mr. Fraser a ticket for operating a vehicle without valid registration and proof of insurance. Sgt. Eric Bowes acknowledged at the scene that Const. Sanford had been in error, but the vehicle was still towed. It was eventually returned and the ticket rescinded the next day.

In making his ruling, Mr. Girard said the unusual conduct of Const. Sanford was enough to establish that discrimination had taken place: "One could infer that Constable Sanford, once having discerned their race, acted on an inadmissible stereotype of black criminality in deciding to stop the vehicle."

Mr. Girard said he was not required to find whether Const. Sanford's decision to stop the vehicle "resulted from a conscious decision on his part or resulted from a subconscious stereotype. Either way it was still a violation of the Nova Scotia Human Rights Act."

Mr. Girard said the liability of Halifax Regional Police was established by Sgt. Bowes' failure to act when he became aware that a possibly discriminatory act by an officer was in progress.

"Under the circumstances, I believe he had a duty to investigate further, and to assure himself that no discriminatory action was taking place," said Mr. Girard. He strongly recommended that the Halifax Regional Police Service re-examine its internal complaints mechanism to ensure it is sensitive to the diversity of the local community.

In holding the police service liable, the board also ordered it to take steps to improve the implementation of its existing anti- racism policies. Mr. Girard has retained jurisdiction over the complaint to ensure the remedies pertaining to the police service are completed. The specific remedies include:

• Halifax Regional Police Service to hire two consultants to conduct a needs assessment of current policies and practices on anti-racism education and diversity training. One consultant must be from Nova Scotia and one must be from outside the Maritimes.

• The consultants must submit a report within six months of being contracted and the report must be made public by Halifax police.

• Police must appoint a senior manager to oversee the work of the consultants.

• A response to the report must be made public by police within three months of its release.

Mr. Girard has also ordered Halifax police to submit a proposal to him within 60 days on a method to keep statistics on the role of race in traffic stops. He has invited submissions from legal counsel for the Human Rights Commission as well and will decide whether to approve the proposal.

Mr. Johnson filed a complaint with the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission in December 1998, alleging that Const. Sanford and the Halifax Regional Police Service had discriminated against him, wrongfully seizing his vehicle. This followed an unsuccessful attempt to resolve the matter through the police service's internal complaints mechanism.

Boards of inquiry are the final stage in the human rights complaint process. They are independent, public hearings into complaints of discrimination. Decisions by boards of inquiry may be appealed within 30 days of the date of the decision.