By Michael Reeve

CODE OF CONDUCT

City of Kamloops promises legal action after mayor’s leak of Code of Conduct investigation report

Apr 6, 2024 | 6:00 AM

KAMLOOPS — The legal firm that represented the City of Kamloops in a Code of Conduct investigation into workplace misconduct allegations against Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson is threatening legal action in response to the mayor’s leak to local media this week.

On Friday (Apr. 5), Hamer-Jackson provided CFJC Today with an unredacted copy of the report stemming from the investigation, compiled by investigator Terry Honcharuk of the Integrity Group. Radio NL also reported on the unredacted document Friday.

Late Friday evening, lawyer James Kondopulos of the Vancouver-based law firm Roper Greyell responded to a request for comment from CFJC Today. In an email, Kondopulos confirmed the city sees the leak of the Honcharuk report as “unlawful.”

“The Honcharuk investigation report, a report that was produced in a privileged and confidential investigation, was leaked unlawfully this week,” reads Kondopulos’ response. “The investigation report was disseminated in its complete and unredacted form and that is entirely improper.”

While Kamloops council has been in possession of the report since last spring, it has always discussed the matter in closed council meetings due to the presence of sensitive personnel information.

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The response from Kondopulos goes on to state the city will be considering legal recourse.

“The City views this breach of the law in a very serious light. It is contrary to the best interests of the municipal corporation and my client will be taking all necessary and appropriate legal action to deal with the matter and seeking any remedy or relief available at law,” says Kondopulos.

In highlighting the possibility of legal recourse, Kondopulos referenced a similar case out of Prince George from 2008. In that instance, sitting councillor Brian Skakun was found guilty of breaching the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPPA) by delivering an investigation report containing personnel details to the CBC.

“A municipal councillor in the City of Prince George, was convicted under s. 30.4 of the FOIPPA of making an unauthorized disclosure to the CBC of personal information that included a copy of a confidential workplace harassment report he had received during a closed restricted city council meeting. He was granted leave to appeal from the dismissal of his summary conviction appeal on the legal issue of whether a municipal councillor is an “officer” of a public body under s. 30.4,” reads the case study. “Appeal dismissed. The trial judge and summary conviction appeal judge correctly interpreted the term “officer” in s. 30.4 as including elected municipal councillors. Properly construed, the ordinary and grammatical meaning of “officer” in s. 30.4, based on its dictionary definition (both legal and non-legal), when read in the context of the broadly-stated purposes of the legislation (to provide access to information and privacy of personal information in the custody or control of public bodies) and the wide scope of its targeted public bodies and organizations, evinces a legislative intention to include elected municipal councillors within the ambit of the provision.”

Details of the Skakun case can be found here.

It’s unclear what the next step will be for the City of Kamloops and what form legal recourse will take.