Pubdate: Sun, 04 May 2008
Source: Ottawa Sun (CN ON)
Copyright: 2008 Canoe Limited Partnership
Contact:  http://www.ottawasun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/329
Author: Jon Willing

CRACK COP WANTS TO STAY ON FORCE

Constable Who Stole Seized Cocaine Appealing Order To Leave

Reinstating a cop who stole drugs from an evidence lockup would
"severely" damage the reputation of the Ottawa Police Service, the
force intends to argue at an appeal hearing next month.

Documents recently filed at the Ottawa courthouse suggest the police
force will continue hammering the point that it can't accommodate
Const. Kevin Hall, who has been ordered to leave the service. After
his appeal failed at the Ontario Civilian Commission on Police
Service, Hall is asking the divisional court to put him back on duty.

The hearing comes on the heels of a commission decision to reinstate
Const. Alec Moraru, who was previously ordered off the Ottawa police
force for a shoplifting incident, which was tied to a post-traumatic
stress disorder.

MORARU CASE

It's unknown if Moraru's successful appeal will favour Hall, who has
previously argued that his drug addiction is a disability.

Hall's lawyer, Kenneth Jull, didn't want to get into the specifics,
only saying he "looks forward to arguing the case in court."

In a recent Sun interview about Moraru's reinstatement, Chief Vernon
White noted the Moraru and Hall appeals "are two different cases."

Moraru was criminally convicted, while Hall was not charged, and
Moraru's activities occurred off-duty, while Hall committed some of
his offences on-duty.

In the Moraru case, the appeal commission ruled the original hearing
officer didn't consider his ability to be rehabilitated. The
commission ordered Moraru to attend regular therapy sessions and
provide reports to the police force.

Hall is proposing a return to the police force, which would include
random drug tests, a demotion and working in a uniform position that
doesn't require a firearm.

In court documents, Hall argues the commission made "fundamental
errors of law."

'REPEATED BREACHES'

Hall believes his case "falls within the principles concerning the
duty to accommodate a person with a disability," court documents say.
But in its written response on the case, the police force says, "To
accept this submission would suggest that repeated breaches of his
duties as a police officer and breaches of the law would not lessen in
any respect the duty to accommodate."

Hall originally pleaded guilty under the Police Services Act to
corrupt practice, discreditable conduct and neglect of duty. The
recovering addict admitted to stealing crack cocaine from evidence
seizures.

Hall, 44, has been suspended with pay since December 2005. If he loses
his appeal, Hall is offering to pay back one month's salary for a
delay in filing his appeal paperwork. His court appeal is scheduled
for June.
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MAP posted-by: Derek