It was a week to forget for the Surrey Police Service – with Chief Constable Norm Lipinski being abruptly shown the door on Monday.
Shortly after, two directors of the Surrey Police Board resigned in protest.
Now, the union says its confidence in the board is at a low point.
Lipinski had led the force since its inception, and many are still left wondering what happened.
“There hasn’t been any clear reason, because there aren’t any,” said Wally Oppal, former attorney general and Supreme Court judge.
Oppal helped oversee Surrey’s policing transition, and he says that the sudden move by the Surrey Police Board came out of left field.
“All indications are that he was doing an excellent job. For someone as established as Norm Lipinski, this was a shock.”
Lipinski’s dismissal on Monday, which he said was “without cause”, sent shockwaves through the SPS and the police board itself, with two of its directors, Harley Chappell and James Carwana, resigning.
Independent MLA for Surrey South, Elenore Sturko, says it warrants a closer look.
“They don’t believe that proper Police Act procedures were taken; it’s the Minister of Public Safety that’s responsible for ensuring that the Police Act of British Columbia is followed,” Sturko told CityNews.
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“I would at least expect her, Nina Krieger, to have a look at the situation here, to review what took place, and to be able to ensure either that proper procedure under the Police Act was followed or take action if it wasn’t.”
When asked by CityNews whether an investigation would take place, Minister Krieger said in a statement that “Municipal police boards are responsible for decisions about staffing, policies, and priorities. The province has no role or authority in those matters. In the case of the Surrey Police Board, the Province will begin the process of filling the two provincially appointed vacant positions.”
Her office also said no complaints have been filed on this matter.
Regardless, Sturko says the lack of communication about why this happened is undermining the work officers are doing.
“We had a 2,000 per cent increase year-to-date in extortions, 94 per cent increase in shots fired, 300 per cent year-to-date in homicides. The frontline officers don’t need drama; they need support, and they need leadership.”
The police union said in a statement, “This is a difficult time for our membership, and confidence in the governance of the Surrey Police Board is at a low point.
We are actively assessing the situation and exploring all available options to protect the interests of our members and the future of the organization.”
The transition from the Surrey RCMP to SPS has been the subject of rampant political infighting over the years, leading some to speculate that the Police Board’s decision was influenced by government.
However, both Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke and B.C. Premier David Eby have claimed innocence.
“Police forces are governed by a local police board; that’s the way that it should be. The provincial government has been far too involved for too long in local police forces here in Surrey,” Premier Eby said.
Meanwhile, Locke characterized the issue as a matter of human resources and doesn’t expect to have any answers on what transpired for some time.
“I found out after the fact; at the same time you did,” Mayor Locke said.
“Nobody ever exposes that until everyone is ready, so I respect both Mr. Lipinski’s position and the board’s position; they have to keep that until everyone is ready to talk about it.”