The Ontario Civilian Police Commission (OCPC) is investigating Hamilton Police Board member Cameron Kroetsch regarding comments he made about the Hamilton police budget process and for making motions at the City Council regarding how police budget surpluses are allocated.
Hamilton Police Board Chair Pat Mandy, a provincial appointee to the Board, alleges Kroetsch violated the Police Services Act by making comments critical of the Police Board’s budgetary approval process.
Mandy filed the complaint on behalf of the Police Services Board.
Ward 2 Councillor Kroetsch is a city council appointee to the Board.
Mandy, citing confidentiality, is not elaborating on why she filed the OCPC’s complaint.
The provincial government appoints members of the Ontario Civilian Police Commission.
In a statement, Kroestch says he is being investigated for “bringing a motion to the City’s Audit, Finance and Administration Committee asking the City to direct the use of HPSB and Hamilton Public Library Board (HPLB) budget surpluses and making public comments on social media that were critical of the Board’s budgetary processes.”
Mayor Andrea Horwath, a member of the Police Board as mayor, supported Kroestch’s motions at City Council.
Mayor Horwath did not support Kroetsch’s budgetary motions at Police Board meetings.
Kroestch states the investigation is designed to silence him for doing his job reviewing the police budget as an elected official.
“I was elected on a platform focused on transparency and accountability and I promised
to do things differently,” he wrote. “Different means speaking out when I see budget processes that are not rigorous and when I have serious questions about how the police are spending public money.”
Public Statements by other Councillors
Ward 4 Councillor Tammy Hwang posted that she is “still trying to wrap my head around this. This council was voted in to do things differently; in an open and transparent way.”
Ward 13 Councillor Alex Wilson wrote, “As a queer Hamiltonian it’s hard not to draw parallels to the retribution faced by our community in the aftermath of the 2019 Pride violence. When demands for accountability we’re brought forward then, our community was blamed the violence, for not being more ‘collaborative’.”
Kroetsch Withdraws Judicial Review Application
On January 11, Kroetsch filed an application for Judicial Review in Ontario’s Divisional Court, arguing that Mandy’s complaint was unreasonable and procedurally unfair. He has withdrawn the application.
Council Can Appoint Temporary Replacement to Board
Hamilton City Council can appoint another councillor to fill Kroetsch’s seat during the vacancy. City Council meetings are suspended due to the City’s ongoing cybersecurity failure/breach.
Production Details v. 1.0.0 Published: March 11, 2024 Last edited: March 11, 2024 Author: Joey Coleman Edit Record v. 1.0.0 original version
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