Thunder Bay police Chief Sylvie Hauth, centre, speaks at a media conference in 2017 addressing the situation in Thunder Bay. Then police services board Chair Jackie Dojack, left, and acting deputy chief Don Lewis also spoke.
The Ontario Civilian Police Commission (OCPC) says it will hold a hearing into “certain alleged conduct” of Thunder Bay police chief Sylvie Hauth.
“The OCPC has determined that a hearing into the allegations is warranted. Accordingly, a Notice of Hearing has been served on Chief Hauth setting out three counts of alleged misconduct,” said a release from the police watchdog.
According to the OCPC, Hauth is facing three counts under the Police Services Act for how she dealt with a criminal investigation of the chair of the Thunder Bay Police Board.
The OCPC allege that Hauth failed to immediately transfer the investigation to an outside force, attempted to deceive the board about when she knew of the investigation and later amended that date.
The allegations have not been tested yet.
Hauth has been under fire for her seemingly lackadaisical approach to solving critical issues within the Thunder Bay police service including death investigations.
The force itself is under investigation for how it handled several death investigations involving Indigenous people. Several investigations have been reopened and some officers are under investigation themselves for how they handled cases.
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On Feb. 11, the OCPC announced that it had concerns about the Thunder Bay police’s “management of discipline in the police service, the conduct of criminal investigations by its officers, and the ability of senior leadership to administer the day-to-day operations of the police service in good faith and in compliance with the Police Services Act.”
The OCPC said its concerns were based on the results of a preliminary review conducted by the province’s solicitor general and the Thunder Bay Police Services Board.
APTN News reached out to Hauth but didn’t hear back.
Hauth announced Thursday on social media that she is retiring in 2023.
Read the OCPC document here:
