The Editor,
Re: “Richmond police officer pleads guilty to breach of trust,” News, Oct. 30.
After all this time, RCMP brass are finally seeking dismissal of Const. Kenrick Whitney. Why has this taken so long? Were they waiting until he qualified for a pension?
Media reports of this guy go back at least as far as October 2003, when the heavyweight, former CFL player and nightclub bouncer-turned Mountie admitted in court that he assaulted another driver over a parking space dispute.
Whitney lost two days’ pay and got 25 hours of community service.
In April 2007, the Mounties disciplined him for spitting in the face of another driver, again over a trivial dispute. That time he lost five days’ pay.
Last May, Whitney was charged with alleged on-duty offences of theft under $5,000 and breach of trust. Eventually, he pleaded guilty to the latter charge. Now, finally, RCMP bosses are talking about firing him. But why has it taken so long?
Whitney’s career suggests police are held to much lower standards than the rest of us. And the question remains: Did senior RCMP let Whitney get away with all that until he qualified for a pension?
Greg Klein
Nanaimo
