Corrections officer suspended, then fired for violating code of conduct and then denying it despite the evidence
Trust is essential for those who are charged with securing the incarceration of criminal elements. A corrections officer who violates that trust can’t be expected to meet the high standard of conduct required in such an occupation, as the Federal Public Sector and Labour Relations and Employment Board stressed in upholding the termination of an Alberta-based corrections officer.
Tejinder Braich was hired by Corrections Canada (CSC) in 2012 to be a correctional officer at Bowden Institution near Calgary. On his first day of work at the institution, he met with a special investigation officer (SIO) and gave the officer a letter disclosing that he had high school friends from his hometown of Abbottsford, B.C., who had been convicted of crimes and were “going through the criminal justice system.” The officer told him it wouldn’t be a problem.
On two other occasions, Braich again contacted the SIO to inform him that he had seen an inmate who was connected to his father — who recognized Braich — and another inmate who knew his cousin and also recognized him. Braich asked if he needed paperwork on these disclosures, but according to Braich the officer didn’t seem concerned.
Braich also claimed he informed the SIO that some of his school friends in Abbottsford were members of a notoriously violent criminal gang, but he had no relationship with them while he worked as a correctional officer.
Hanging out with gang members
On Feb. 12, 2014, Abbottsford police entered a local bar as part of rounds they conducted at bars known to be popular with criminal gang members. A police officer recognized known gang members at a table and Braich was sitting with them. The officer asked Braich to identify himself and as Braich opened his wallet to pull out identification, the officer noticed his CSC badge displayed prominently in a clear window of the wallet. The officer felt Braich was deliberately showing him the badge and Braich indicated that he was a corrections officer.
The officer took Braich aside and said he was disappointed to find a corrections officer seated with criminal gang members. He checked Braich’s background with a dispatcher and when no criminal record was found, he told him he wasn’t required to leave. However, as was their practice, the police told the gang members to leave the bar and escorted them out.
Braich left the bar and got into a taxi, followed by the gang members who had been ejected from the bar. They took the taxi to another bar, where the gang members got out. Braich stayed in the taxi and went home.
A few months later, on June 5, Braich and some co-workers went to the apartment of a CSC colleague following a golf tournament. Braich had been drinking all day and was intoxicated, though the gathering itself was quiet with only about six people there. Braich mentioned to a couple of colleagues that he had been worried about his connection to criminal gangs and what he should do if any members arrived at Bowden. He then went into the bathroom and two colleagues saw him emerge with white powder stuck on one of his nostrils. One colleague went into the bathroom and observed a “dusting of a white powder” on the vanity counter, which she assumed was cocaine.
The next day, Braich apologized to his colleague and explained it was the first time he had done that. The colleague thought he was referring to doing cocaine at a gathering of work colleagues, but Braich later said he was apologizing for being so intoxicated. Soon after, the co-worker who lived at the apartment and had also seen the white powder confronted him about using cocaine and making a mess in her home. Braich asked her not to tell anyone, but the co-worker told an SIO about it.
CSC also learned of the incident in the Abbottsford bar, and its intelligence stated that all three of the gang members seated with Braich had connections to a violent gang war involving execution-style killings as well as inmates in federal institutions.
CSC conducted an investigation and interviewed Braich about his using cocaine, the night at the Abbottsford bar, and his connections with criminal organizations.
Braich said he and his brother had arrived at the bar and heard someone call his name. It turned out to be someone he had went to school with but had no relationship since. The former schoolmate was a gang member, and Braich was talking to him and catching up when the police arrived. He agreed he had identified himself as a corrections officer and said he had told the police he had run into old school friends and one of them had asked for help going straight from his life of crime — something he felt he had a duty to do as a corrections officer and peace officer.
Braich also claimed he didn’t know that his school friend and his companions were convicted criminals with gang affiliations, though he knew his friend had a history of incarceration through news reports. He said he only had a brief conversation with the men at the table and left the bar after a few minutes.
When asked about the party, Braich denied using cocaine and said he didn’t remember much because he was so intoxicated. He said he had gone to the bathroom to vomit, but his colleagues didn’t report hearing or smelling it but they did see the white powder.
Trust and reputation damaged
The investigation determined Braich had used cocaine while off duty, had “continued criminal organization associations,” and had used a CSC badge for non-official purposes. As a result, Braich was suspended.
In September 2014, Bowden Institution’s warden returned after a three-month leave. When he saw Braich was suspended, he looked into the investigation findings and determined he had violated the CSC’s code of discipline by discrediting it, showing disrespect for the law, violating employer trust, and failing to comply with a legislative directive and public service values. He terminated Braich’s employment for breaking the bond of trust required of correctional officers.
Braich grieved the termination, arguing there was insufficient evidence to support cause for dismissal. He also said it was unfair for CSC to do nothing after the incident at the Abbottsford Bar and then terminate him four months later after the cocaine allegation.
The board found that there was no doubt from the Abbottsford police officer’s account and Braich’s acknowledgement that Braich had purposely showed his badge to the police in the bar as a means to identify himself. Since he was not performing any duties for work, he used his badge for non-official purposes, said the board.
The board also found that Braich’s claim that he happened to run into his old friends who were gang members didn’t seem credible. Since the bar was a known gang hangout, it was a strange destination for a correctional officer, and the police indicated he was likely at the table for more than a few minutes, since he was sitting down. In addition, if his school friend had asked for help in going straight, as Braich claimed, he knew the friend was involved in criminal activities — something he denied when interviewed. In light of the evidence, it was reasonable for CSC to conclude Braich had continued criminal organization associations while employed with CSC, said the board — especially since he had already disclosed criminal connections to an SIO.
In addition, the evidence pointed to Braich using cocaine at his co-worker’s apartment. The co-workers who saw the powder on his nose and in the bathroom were reliable witnesses and Braich himself said he couldn’t remember much of that night. The board supported the likelihood of the scenario in which he used cocaine.
The board found the reason CSC didn’t do anything initially after learning of the bar incident was because the Abbottsford police asked it not be disclosed at that time to avoid jeopardizing an investigation into organized crime. The delay also didn’t hurt Braich’s chance to address the incident once the investigation was launched, said the board.
The board also found Braich couldn’t explain why cocaine was in the bathroom after he had been in it and why some of it happened to be caked on his nostril. There was no other logical explanation other than he had taken some while in his co-worker’s bathroom.
The board determined that criminal associations which Braich had were “deeply troubling and completely unacceptable” for a CSC employee that could harm the credibility and reputation of CSC. In addition the use of cocaine at a gathering with other CSC employees was a poor decision and further risked CSC’s reputation. Since Braich insisted he had done nothing wrong, termination was an appropriate level of discipline, said the board in dismissing Braich’s claim.
For more information see:
• Braich v. Deputy Head (Correctional Service of Canada), 2017 CarswellNat 8346 (Fed. Pub. Sector Lab. Rel. & Emp. Bd.).
