Police and government debate Quebec racial profiling law

A law won't be enough to end racial profiling by police forces, the Montreal police department said Tuesday.

The SPVM was in parliamentary committee to vote on Bill 14, which provides for the Minister of Public Security to set out guidelines for random police stops.

The Ligue des droits et libertés has demanded a ban on police stops for both pedestrians and motorists.

On the other hand, the Montreal police union has warned Minister François Bonnardel against too strict a framework for stops, which would be useful in the fight against street gangs.

In a ruling last October, the Superior Court condemned traffic stops as "racial profiling." The government has asked the Court of Appeal to overturn this ruling.

In parliamentary committee, Liberal MNA Jennifer Maccarone wanted to know if the bill tabled by Bonnardel would help the SPVM put an end to racial profiling.

"It is not by means of a single law that we can change both practices and behaviours," said SPVM deputy director Marc Charbonneau. "It is an amalgam of actions that must be taken."

He said that he wanted more details in the bill on the directives that could be set out.

The Ligue des droits et libertés argued that the pedestrian stop has no basis in law and also criticized the government's appeal of the Superior Court ruling.

"The guideline does not address the issue at all," said Lynda Khelil, the League's advocacy officer.

POLICE UNION

Montreal police union president Yves Francoeur warned Bonnardel about the potential guidelines.

"This type of random arrest is necessary to fight street gangs," Francoeur suggested in the parliamentary committee. "There is a very thin line between criminal intelligence work and the supervision of the practice of interpellation."

Too much supervision in the context of the current violence in Montreal is harmful, the union president said.

"The police must do their job, and that's what 90 per cent of the population is asking for in order to live in safety," Francoeur insisted. "When police officers are on patrol, it's dark, and they see an individual with a backpack walking between vehicles in an industrial park, they expect our officers to go to the person and ask: 'What are you doing at 2:00 a.m. when there's no one around?'"

Bonnardel clearly asked the representatives of the Ligue des droits et libertés what a police officer should do in the example of intervention given by Francoeur, but they did not give a clear answer to the question.

"Interruptions are not part of the police powers provided for by the law," argued the league's Laurence Guénette. "The other powers are legal, these powers are sufficient. It takes criteria for a police officer to interact with people."

Liberal MNA André Albert Morin ironically reminded the league that a committee of CAQ MNAs had also called for an end to random police stops, which the bill does not.

RESIGNATIONS

In addition, the union painted a bleak picture of the state of the workforce and morale.

There was a record of 78 resignations last year and no less than 20 more since the beginning of this year.

"Honestly, it's difficult," Francoeur said, denouncing the new ethical sanctions the government wants to impose in Bill 14.

The police union president of the Brotherhood suggested that its members are already under too much pressure and that these sanctions would only add to it.

He noted that consultations with the five psychologists in the police assistance program increased by 56 per cent between 2017 and 2021.

Among other things, Bill 14 would change the role of the Police Ethics Committee, which would become a tribunal.

Francoeur rejects, for example, the imposition of sanctions such as a medical examination, an assistance programme, community involvement and a social immersion course.

These are measures that "lull workers," that "treat police officers unfairly and treat them like criminals."

"If we add coercive measures, we miss the target," said Jacques Painchaud, president of the Quebec Police Association. "(Police officers) are people of heart, don't go down the regulatory road" on sanctions, he asked the minister, who said he had heard his appeal.

RACIAL PROFILING DURING POLICE STOPS

The minister would be required to establish guidelines for police stops, including random interceptions in relation to section 636 of the Highway Safety Code, within two months of the law's official entry into force.

Failure to comply with the directives could result in disciplinary action against police officers.

Police forces will also be required to publish an annual report on police stops, including traffic stops.

YERGEAU JUDGMENT

Last October, Superior Court Justice Michel Yergeau ordered an end to random interceptions because they do indeed result in racial profiling and because the violation of the rights of those who are victims of such interceptions is no longer tolerable.

The judge concluded that the police will not be able to eliminate profiling unless they are prevented from arresting anyone at any time.

Based on evidence that "black people are at least twice as likely to be stopped as white people," the judge concluded that "racial profiling does exist" and that it is "a reality that weighs heavily on black communities."

In addition, the judge felt that he had not been shown that random stops improve traffic outcomes.

"It is impossible to conclude that there is a functional link between this specific type of police stop, the random traffic stop, and a reduction in the number of serious accidents, impaired driving or unlicensed drivers," he wrote.

Last November, Bonnardel appealed the decision to the Court of Appeal.

CAQ REPORT

A group of CAQ elected officials had also tabled a report in 2020 calling for an end to random police stops.

"With regard to racial profiling, the bias that exists in police stops based on race appears to be a major issue," it said.

Racial profiling in police stops is repeatedly highlighted. It affects citizens' trust in the police. The links between police violence and racism are the other issue that has been raised insistently in the field of public security.

For its part, the government nevertheless wants to maintain the tool of random interception at the disposal of the police.

"Interceptions and stops are important to ensure public safety, but they cannot be made on discriminatory grounds," Bonnardel said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on April 4, 2023.