Transit Police officer fired after assault claims reinstated
Posted February 18, 2014 8:35 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
SURREY (NEWS1130) – A Transit Police officer who was fired over accusations he assaulted a senior at Surrey Memorial Hospital in 2010 has been reinstated.
An arbitrator has given Ken Jansen his job back.
But Jordan Bateman with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation says that decision could be a costly one for the public. “Now, we’ve seen this big reverse; this big win for him.”
“The people that are going to be punished the most are the taxpayers. If he gets his way, Transit Police is going to be on the hook for a big chunk of money; that’s a problem for those of us who have to pay the bill,” he explains.
Jansen is seeking up to $120,000 in damages and legal fees from TransLink. Bateman feels this case highlights a fundamental flaw in how the transit system is policed.
“This has been one of my problems with Transit Police from the beginning: Transit Police are different from transit security and they’re subject to the Police Act, which just brings with it a whole range of legal fees.”
Jansen had initially been suspended; he was then fired. After an appeal, he was re-instated.
The force has not commented on the matter.
