Quebec Domestic Security Minister Ian Lafrenière has appointed Anne-Marie Boisvert as the independent observer who will oversee an investigation by Montreal police into a group of officers accused of racial profiling.
The Service de police de la ville de Montréal (SPVM) has already recommended criminal charges against two of 16 police officers from Station 39 who are under investigation for racist and hateful acts allegedly committed against Black and Arab people during police stops.
In a post on X on Saturday, Lafrenière said Boisvert, a lawyer, had been tasked with ensuring the process is conducted with “all necessary diligence and rigor.”
“Her mandate will be to verify that the SPVM’s investigations — both criminal and disciplinary —are conducted with integrity and impartiality, and to submit a report to me with her findings and recommendations,” Lafrenière wrote.
“If she identifies any irregularities or a lack of cooperation on the part of the SPVM, she must inform me immediately.”
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Boisvert’s findings will also be shared with Montreal’s public safety commission, according to Lafrenière.
Boisvert served as dean of the Université de Montréal’s law faculty from 2004 to 2008 and also served as chair for the Quebec Bar Association’s criminal law committee for several years.
Lafrenière had promised earlier in the week to appoint an independent observer after mounting calls for an independent investigation into the matter.
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Lafrenière reiterated he hadn’t ruled out the possibility of holding a public inquiry if necessary, but only after the conclusion of the criminal investigation.
“Like all Quebecers, I want full light to be shed on these he events,” he wrote.
