Judge Leslie Jackson of the New Brunswick Provincial Court sentenced the RCMP this morning for Labour Code violations in relation to the incident in Moncton in June 2014 that resulted in the deaths of Constables Douglas James Larche, Dave Joseph Ross and Fabrice Georges Gevaudan. The RCMP were fined $100,000 and are also obliged to make donations totalling an additional $450,000 for an educational trust fund for the children of the murdered officers ($60K), scholarships at the University of Moncton in the names of the officers, demonstrating dedication to the community ($300K) and an additional $90K to other organizations.
Following the sentencing, RCMP Veterans’ Association National President Al Rivard released a statement to the media noting that the sentencing reinforces the expectation that the community has upon RCMP leadership to properly and robustly equip officers for their duty. He also noted that the sentence reinforces to the Government of Canada that there are real costs – and human costs – involved when the RCMP is not adequately funded, and when detachments are operating with severe staff shortages. It affects the community and officer safety. Pres. Rivard said that he hoped the sentence levied upon the RCMP today will motivate the Government of Canada to provide the RCMP with the funds it needs to hire, train, equip and compensate its officers so that they are able to do the job we expect of them, and to return home safely to their own families at the end of a shift.
