Montreal police sergeant reprimanded for comments to harassment victim

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The Montreal police ethics commission has ruled that a Montreal sergeant made inappropriate comments to a woman filing a police report after being sexually harassed in 2019; but it ruled in favour of another officer who the woman had complained about in the same matter.

In its decision dated April 8, the commission ruled that Sgt. Martin Bouchard twice contravened Article 5 of the police code of ethics of Quebec when Anastasia Boldireff attempted to file a complaint about a man who had harassed her. However, the commission ruled that officer Kevin Jacob did not contravene Article 5 with comments that he made to Boldireff that same evening.

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Boldireff was a doctoral student at Concordia University in 2019 when a man began insistently pursuing her and asking her to go out with him. She was accosted at least three times by the man, including in front of the university and outside a café near the university. She feared for her safety.

While she was describing what happened to Sgt. Bouchard, Boldireff says he responded: “He sounds like a good-looking man. A soccer player you say. Why don’t you go on a date with him?”

Then, as she was preparing to leave the station and asked about the possibility of a police escort home, Bouchard told her none was available. While giving her safety advice for her walk home, Boldireff says Bouchard told her, “You should consider what you’re wearing.”

The ethics commission reprimanded Bouchard for having contravened Article 5 in both instances.

“Such comments are sufficiently serious to stain the moral probity of Sgt. Bouchard, and stray largely from the behaviour of the reasonably prudent and diligent police officer,” the commission said in its decision.

It also called Bouchard’s comments “unacceptable and inappropriate.”

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Following the conversation with Bouchard, Boldireff was speaking with officer Jacob, who said he would watch her walk to the métro. At this point, Boldireff said Jacob told her, “I’m sure being an attractive woman like you gets you in trouble,” to which she replied, “Yes, it makes me vulnerable.”

The ethics commission did not reprimand Jacob, as Boldireff only complained about his comment almost a year after her initial complaint was filed against Bouchard, and the commission found Jacob’s denial credible.

“I have mixed feelings about the decision,” Boldireff said in a statement. “I believe in a system of justice that has consequences for inappropriate behaviour and education on appropriate behaviour. I hope that those in positions of power who can affect lasting change provide the police with better education, training, policies and procedures so that they can better serve and protect victims of sexual violence so that what happened to me never occurs again.”

Fo Niemi, executive director of the Centre for Research-Action on Race Relations called the decision “a partial victory for victims of sexual violence where the police’s duty to serve and protect is concerned, although we note that the commissioner did not cite the officers for gender-based, discriminatory comments.”

The case is also before the Quebec Human Rights Tribunal, where the two officers are accused of gender-based discrimination.

The man who had harassed Boldireff, Adamo Bono, pleaded guilty to two counts of criminal harassment in April 2022. He received a conditional discharge to reside and receive treatment in a psychiatric care facility for two years.

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