MAYOR BACKS UP CHIEF

Owen admits he's mystified details went unreported

Vancouver police chief Terry Blythe did the right thing by ordering an
internal probe into the conduct of five female officers, Mayor Philip Owen
said yesterday.

"I support what Chief Blythe is doing," said Owen, also chairman of the
police board. "He just heard about this yesterday [Tuesday], and he's called
for a review, which is the appropriate thing to do."

But Owen said he's mystified how Blythe was kept in the dark while the case
was before provincial court.

In a ruling released late last week, Judge Herb Weitzel said the five
officers were "lacking in credibility" during their testimony in a drug
case.

The officers-- Sherron Bayley, Jodyne Dyck, Elizabeth Miller, Katrina
O'Reilly and Denise Barry -- allegedly trashed the home of suspected drug
dealers during a raid. Weitzel found that the constables' testimony
unreliable and tossed the case out of court Dec. 16.

"I think it's a real mystery that this has been hanging around for a month
and nobody brought it to the chief for review," said Owen. "If the defence,
prosecution and judge had major concerns, somebody should have come to the
[chief]."

Weitzel's ruling hinged on a set of photos entered as evidence in the trial
of Thomas Denault, Joseph Denault and Miles McCaughey. The trio were
arrested in March 1998 after police executed a search warrant on their
Commercial Drive home. Small amounts of marijuana and drug paraphernalia
were seized.

Joseph Denault returned to his house after being released on bail to find it
in shambles. He found personal photos torn up and tossed on the floor,
alcohol poured down the toilet and shaving cream smeared all over his
bathroom mirror. He also found one of his cameras with the film pulled out
and exposed and the other still loaded and containing pictures of the
officers apparently vandalizing the home.

The incident is under review by the police force's internal investigation
unit. Police spokeswoman Anne Drennan said Blythe is reviewing the 400-page
court transcript, which includes the testimony of all five officers, who
remain on duty.

"Everything will come out. This isn't some sort of secret. Under the Police
Act it is appropriate for the police chief to call an investigation," said
Owen.

Peter Kendall, lawyer for brothers Joseph and Thomas Denault, says his
clients haven't decided whether to lodge a formal complaint against the
police.

David Fai, lawyer for Miles McCaughey, said internal police investigations
tend to "come up with some sort of plausible deniability" for the officers
involved.

Fai said the stay of proceedings doesn't help McCaughey, who wanted to clear
his name in a trial. McCaughey maintains he was visiting the apartment.