What We DO
IIU investigates all serious incidents involving police officers in Manitoba, whether occurring on or off duty. The jurisdiction over police services in Manitoba includes the RCMP.
The IIU mandate ensures:
- accountability
- independence
- objectivity
- high investigative standards
- timeliness
- thoroughness
There are four main circumstances under which the IIU must be called into action where it is alleged that:
- a death of a person,
- a serious injury to a person,
- a contravention of a prescribed federal or provincial statute, or
- any other matter, for which the Civilian Director considers it in the public interest to conduct an investigation
that may have resulted from the actions of a police officer.
What you should know
The IIU does not take complaints directly from the public
Police must notify the IIU of an incident that may fall within their jurisdiction. The IIU requires police to secure the scene of the incident until an IIU investigative team arrives.
The IIU does not deal with public complaints about police conduct or performance
These complaints are handled by Manitoba’s Law Enforcement Review Agency (LERA).
Background
In 2007, Manitoba’s Attorney General commissioned the Taman Inquiry, a review of investigation, prosecution and justice services provided to the families in relation to the death of Crystal Taman. The inquiry report released on October 6, 2008 included 14 recommendations (Report of the Taman Inquiry). The province announced its intention to implement all recommendations. In particular, pursuant to recommendation 3:
That the Minister of Justice give consideration to creating a provincial special investigative unit independent of all police enforcement agencies in Manitoba for the purpose of investigating any alleged criminal activity of a member of a police service
Following on this recommendation, Manitoba has created the most comprehensive investigation model in Canada to deal with serious incidents involving police, both on and off duty.