The Regina Police Service (RPS) has disciplined an officer who repeatedly accessed the personal information of six individuals without authorization for more than three years.
The breaches occurred between October 2021 and June 2024 in the RPS information system.
Over the three-year period, the officer accessed the personal information of six citizens, including a former partner, the former partner’s sibling, and the former partner’s previous partner, 67 times.
The OIPC report released Dec. 11 described the breaches as “intentional and wilful” and found that RPS’s disciplinary measures were insufficient to restore public trust.
Chief Lorilee Davies addressed the issue at a news conference on Dec. 18, emphasizing the seriousness of the misconduct.
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“It’s my expectation that this is not a normal action, it’s not behaviour we condone or support. I take this very seriously; our administration takes this very seriously,” Davies said.
Disciplinary actions for the officer included one day without pay, re-taking a privacy training course, re-signing the RPS confidentiality protocol, and undergoing random audits of the IEIS database for two years.
Davies said that, “We have humans that work here and sometimes they make mistakes.”
However, Davies said the officer was “remorseful” and believes he will not commit the same offence again.
According to RPS, they were unaware that the privacy commissioner would be filing a release regarding the incident but hope it sends “a strong message that this type of behaviour won’t be condoned.”
The OIPC report recommended that RPS permanently revoke the officer’s access to IEIS.
It also called for improvements to auditing practices and a policy of zero tolerance for unauthorized access to personal information.
The commissioner found that RPS took minimal steps in containing the privacy breach and determined that the penalties imposed on Duquette were significantly inadequate, given the scope and length of the breach.
“The disciplinary measures adopted by RPS in this case are wholly inadequate and will not restore public faith in the RPS,” the report read
However, Davies said that option is not possible given that RPS officers have roles and responsibilities which require access to the IEIS system.
“We are looking at steps now in terms of how we can ensure this doesn’t happen again,” she added.
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