COP GUILTY

A former 17-year veteran of the St. Thomas Police Service received a
conditional discharge Wednesday after pleading guilty to drug and
firearms charges.

Bruce Armstrong, 43, of Malahide township appeared in the Ontario
Court of Justice in St. Thomas where he pleaded guilty to possession
of cocaine, improper storage of a firearm and vandalizing a doorbell
- -- all stemming from incidents in 2005.

Armstrong, formerly a police constable, tendered his resignation to
Chief Bill Lynch Wednesday morning.

A 12-month probation period is attached to the discharge, with
conditions such as staying away from his estranged wife, a ban on
possessing drugs, alcohol or firearms and a 10-year prohibition on
owning firearms.

Armstrong was originally charged with 15 offences -- all but three
were dropped by the Crown.

Instead of a trial or jail time, David Foulds, regional Crown
counsel, and Armstrong's lawyer, Patrick Ducharme, agreed on a
conditional discharge and a joint statement of facts, accepted by
Justice of the Peace John Menzies.

According to that statement, provided to the Times-Journal, OPP
officers began an investigation in August, 2005, after being
contacted by Armstrong's estranged wife. According to the statement,
between April and May, 2005, Armstrong had destroyed the front
doorbell of his wife's home during an argument regarding access to
his children.

On Aug. 11, 2005, OPP officers arrested Armstrong and during the
arrest, he was seen throwing an object into the grass. That item
turned out to be a crack pipe. Analysis showed it contained trace
amounts of crack cocaine. While in custody, Armstrong told police he
had a loaded shotgun stored in a locked vault in the bedroom of his
Calton Line home. He was released from custody on Aug. 15 with
conditions prohibiting him from possessing or taking drugs.

On Sept. 2, 2005, Armstrong was approached by two St. Thomas police
officers after he was seen entering the home of a man suspected of
illicit drug trafficking in the area of Hammond and Balaclava
streets. After admitting he had been at the home, Armstrong was
placed under arrest for breaching his release order. While being
escorted back to the police cruiser, Armstrong put up a struggle and
had to be wrestled to the ground. Other officers were called in to
help. A crack pipe, found in Armstrong's hand, had to be pried free
by officers and about 0.6 grams of cocaine, worth about $120, were
found in his sock. He was held in custody for a week before being
released Sept. 9. on a $20,000 bail bond.

Ducharme explained his client has worked to reform since that time.

"Mr. Armstrong has received some extensive treatment for drugs and
alcohol. He's now drug- and alcohol-free," said Ducharme. "He's
turned the corner. He has job opportunities and is very anxious to
put this behind him."

Foulds said Armstrong's willingness to reform and his voluntary
resignation were factors in agreeing to the conditional discharge.

Armstrong and Ducharme declined to comment after Wednesday's proceedings.

Lynch said he was happy with the decision.

"We felt that Armstrong should not continue as a police officer and
obviously with the results, that was resolved," he said. "And we felt
it was important that justice needed to be served.

"In the joint submission, Armstrong took responsibility for his
actions. I think based on the fact that he's sought treatment for his
dependencies, I think it allows him to starts fresh and it allows the
community and our service to move on."

An internal police investigation, ongoing at the time of Armstrong's
arrest, has been dropped, Lynch explained, since Armstrong is no
longer a police officer.