Quebec releases report by interim chief critical of Montreal police

Montreal’s suspended police chief did not take the necessary steps to reassure the public about the integrity of the police department, says a report from the interim chief.

Public Security Minister Martin Coiteux said he asked Mayor Valerie Plante to get city council’s opinion on Philippe Pichet’s future after he released the preliminary report on Monday by interim chief Martin Prud’homme.

Pichet was suspended with pay in December and replaced by Prud’homme, who took a leave from his duties as chief of the provincial police to temporarily manage the city’s force.

Pichet was suspended after a report by Michel Bouchard, who found irregularities in the Montreal police force including allegations about the practices of the internal investigations department.

Prud’homme’s report, which he delivered to Coiteux at the end of May, describes a city police force with low morale and warring internal factions. It also says officers are afraid to speak out.

“I have asked the mayor of Montreal … to obtain an opinion from her municipal council, as well as from the public security committee, regarding the situation of Mr. Pichet,” Coiteux said in a news release.

Local media reports say Pichet filed a civil suit last week demanding the Quebec government and the city administration reinstate him as police chief.