IIO Reaches Substantial Number of Files in its 7th Year

INFORMATION BULLETIN
Independent Investigations Office
For Immediate Release

Surrey – The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. is marking its seventh year in operation on 10 September 2019, with an increase in files compared with 2018.

As of August 4, 2019, the IIO received 161 referrals in this calendar year. 130 have been opened as investigations with 71 complete and 59 still ongoing. 31 files were classified as Advice files, which means the facts did not meet the IIO’s mandate.

In comparison to the same time frame in 2018 the IIO had only received 93 referrals, with 70 opened as investigations, and 23 classified as Advice files.

Ron MacDonald, IIO Chief Civilian Director said, “Because of the dedication of the Investigators and the support team, all have stepped up to manage the significant increase in files and ensure investigations are completed in a professional and timely manner. As we complete our seventh year, these numbers support the ongoing benefit of civilian led police oversight.

We are also are looking forward this year, to filling our investigator vacancies to fully staff our investigative teams. This will give us further capacity to address our current workload.”

The IIO website has a page dedicated to a searchable list of investigations that have either concluded or are ongoing. It also holds public reports that describe in detail incidents that have occurred and the investigational steps the IIO has taken to conclude the file. This transparency enables the public to understand details of the incident, what the IIO did to investigate and the reason behind the Chief Civilian Directors decision. Ultimately the IIO office exists to increase public confidence in the investigation and review of police actions in BC.

Background

The IIO is the independent civilian oversight agency of the police in British Columbia. It investigates all officer-related incidents that result in serious harm or death, whether or not there is any allegation of wrongdoing.

The IIO was formed in 2012 and became operational on September 10, 2012.
info@iiobc.ca