Vancouver Police Chief Adam Palmer says his department will request an additional $500,000 in next year’s budget to implement eight recommendations from the coroner’s inquest into the suicide of Const. Nicole Chan.
The board received a report April 20 that outlined eight recommendations from the coroner’s jury, which included respectful workplace training, a policy to recognize rumours and gossip as an example of unprofessional behaviour and annual psychological check-ins for officers.
“I agree with all of the recommendations that came out of the coroner's inquest,” Palmer said after the board meeting.
“I don't think it'll be hard to implement, and I think it's something we can move on quite quickly. There's a few in there that do require some financial support. But from talking with the board, I'm pretty sure we're going to get that support.”
Chan, 30, died on Jan. 27, 2019 after committing suicide in her Olympic Village apartment. The coroner’s jury heard that Chan’s suicide stemmed from mental health issues associated with relationships with two male co-workers.
The police report that went before the board said the cost of implementing the eight recommendations could cost between $433,000 to $543,000, or as Palmer put it, “ballpark $500,000.”
In March, council approved a budget of $373.5 million this year for the department. Adding an additional $500,000 will be a request of the board in the department’s 2024 budget request. The Police Act states the board has to approve a budget by Nov. 30 of each year.
“So we'll go to the board with a recommendation to increase our budget by that amount, and then we'll go to city council and that will become part of our 2024 operating budget,” Palmer said. “There are ways that we could try and squeeze it into 2023 and make it work, but there is a risk of going over budget.”
Asked if implementing the recommendations will bring noticeable change at the department, Palmer said: “Well, a lot of things have changed already since 2019. And just more training, more education, changing policy, respectful workplace training — all that kind of stuff is good. All organizations progress over time, so I think we're heading in a good direction.”
Board member Frank Chong, who oversees the board’s finance committee, said the $500,000 cost is “justifiable, so long as there's accountability from a respectful workplace standpoint.”
“As a board member, I'd be looking for how the management team is driving that accountability with all team members with regards to respectful workplace, but overall [I have] no concerns with regards to the costs associated with this,” Chong said.
Meanwhile, police have yet to reveal how much it will cost to launch a new school liaison program. Staffing the program with 17 officers is the bulk of the cost and was anticipated in the 2023 budget.
The board, however, has not made a decision on the program but plans to do so in June.
