News

Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner Julian Fantino is expected today to be in the unusual position of testifying before a tribunal about allegations that he used the internal OPP disciplinary process to wage a vendetta against one of his high-ranking officers.

The case pits the tough-talking police boss against high-profile defence lawyer Julian Falconer, who is alleging that Commissioner Fantino was so consumed with finding the author of a leak that he scapegoated an innocent officer.

Mr. Falconer's allegations were made in the disciplinary hearing of two of his clients, both OPP officers: Superintendent Ken MacDonald and Inspector Alison Jevons.

In a motion to dismiss the charges, Mr. Falconer says there has been an abuse of process against his clients.

The motion says the commissioner at one point asked one of his deputies, Chief Superintendent Bill Grodzinski, “Are you going to execute the disloyal one or do you want me to?”

Chief Supt. Grodzinski was reassigned to a job in North Bay after his notes about Commissioner Fantino's remarks became tribunal evidence, the motion said. Mr. Falconer's motion says the move was “an act of reprisal.”

The hearing's prosecutor denied Mr. Falconer's allegations.

“The commissioner does not bear any animus or ill will towards either of the subject officers,” prosecutor Brian Gover told the tribunal's adjudicator yesterday.

Mr. Gover will question Commissioner Fantino today, then Mr. Falconer will cross-examine him.

Mr. Falconer's two clients were members of the force's internal affairs branch.

They investigated Detective Staff Sergeant Mark Zulinski, after a complaint that he didn't properly handle the case of an OPP sergeant accused of bashing his ex-spouse's car with a baseball bat.

After a complaint from the Ontario Provincial Police Association, Supt. MacDonald and Insp. Jevons were charged with neglect of duty in their handling of the Zulinski affair.

By approving the charges and extending filing deadlines, Commissioner Fantino helped the union in its complaint against Supt. MacDonald and Insp. Jevons, Mr. Falconer alleges.

“This is a political prosecution, hashed by a political association and continued … by a political commissioner,” Mr. Falconer once told the adjudicator.

The tribunal has heard that Supt. MacDonald was the target of the commissioner's ire after the force decided to restructure in 2006, moving responsibility for its detachment in Caledon from the OPP's Toronto administrative region to its Central region.

Because Toronto region handles mainly highway patrol, Caledon didn't have to share its OPP investigators with other towns. This could change once Caledon became part of Central region, an officer testified yesterday.

Supt. MacDonald once commanded the Caledon detachment, leading Commissioner Fantino to suspect that he leaked news of the restructuring to local municipal politicians, Chief Supt. Grodzinski testified earlier this year.

Chief Supt. Grodzinski said he tried to tell Commissioner Fantino that the leaks could have come from someone else.

“The commissioner essentially closed the conversation by saying, ‘that's it, we're done, let's move on,'” Chief Supt. Grodzinski testified earlier this year.

Chief Supt. Grodzinski took notes of the conversation, including the commissioner's desire “to execute the disloyal one.”

After the notes were filed with the tribunal earlier this year, Chief Supt. Grodzinski was told he was posted to North Bay as head of the OPP Northeast region.

The evidence also includes an e-mail sent by Commissioner Fantino who complained about the leaks and concluded: “There is no place in the OPP for anyone to hide who is disloyal, disruptive, or dishonest, for what it's worth! J.F.”