Allegations fly in prison drug scandal : A prison guard who led an
investigation claims that his union refused to protect him and his
staff.

By: Dianne Rinehart

Allegations of misconduct and betrayal flew from all sides Thursday in
the debate over a controversial prison team that was investigating
drug deals.

A prison guard who led the team, which he says found evidence
corrections officers were dealing drugs to inmates, claims his union
refused to protect him, his staff and their families from threats and
harassment from other corrections officers.

Ron Leskun said John Shields, president of the B.C. Government and
Service Employees Union, refused to investigate complaints his team
was being harassed by union members, including shop stewards, after
two guards were dismissed in July 1995 for dealing drugs to inmates
because it's in bed with the NDP government that disbanded his unit.

Leskun said the harassers were guards some of them union shop
stewards who believe correctional officers shouldn't ``rat'' on
their fellow workers.

Leskun's team was disbanded in February. He claims the government
deepsixed it because of political pressure from the union, which
threatened a wildcat strike unless the unit was disbanded.

The government said Wednesday the unit was disbanded so it could be
``retooled'' and replaced with a team that would simply investigate
inmates who are dealing drugs. Attorney General Ujjal Dosanjh said he
doesn't believe prison guards should be investigating other prison
guards. That's a job for the police, he said.

And Shields said Thursday it was Leskun and his team that were
harassing other correctional officers. He added he hasn't been
actively supportive of the NDP since the government announced it was
laying off 3,500 of his union members shortly after the election last
year.

``What has happened here is we have a corrections unit that became a
rogue unit. It went off the direction given it.''

Shields said there were numerous complaints against Leskun that he was
overstepping the bounds of his authority.

Asked why Leskun was praised for his investigative efforts by the
director of the Fraser Regional Correctional Centre, Ron Williams,
Shields said: ``It was his unit. He's directing it.''

Shields said his union members believe Williams was using the unit
``to get them.''

``There's a perception among officers that this was his tool.''

Bill Young, a representative for the Corrections Branch, said Thursday
that Williams is a good manager who is dealing with a large and
difficult institution.

``He would manage his staff according to proper procedures.''

Shields also said Thursday that Leskun cannot corroborate his
allegations that staff were dealing drugs to inmates.

The two officers who were fired were never charged by police. One was
reinstated and allowed to resign and given $20,000. The other agreed
to simply leave the public service.

Shields said there wasn't a shred of evidence the two did anything
wrong and they left after it was agreed there would be no cloud over
their heads.

John Mochrie, a representative of the Public Service Employee
Relations Commission, which negotiates grievances, said Wednesday the
deal ``resulted in the two persons involved leaving the public
service. . .

``What we were negotiating was how to deal with it without going to
arbitration . . .. As a result, they left the public service.''

Liberal MP Mike de Jong continued his attack on the government
Thursday for disbanding the unit. De Jong said the unit was disbanded
to cover up the fact guards were dealing drugs to inmates.

He said Shields should be ashamed of himself for abandoning Leskun.
``Ron Leskun is a member of his union and he has abandoned Ron Leskun,
his colleagues and their families. He was given all the relevant
information and he did nothing. He even goes so far as to try and cast
doubt on his credibility on the grounds he served in Vietnam.''

Quoting from memos from Williams, de Jong said: ``Every single
reference to Ron Leskun in performance evaluations indicates he was a
superior employee doing a superior job.

``Maybe Shields should realize as a representative of a union his job
extends beyond simply covering the NDP's ass.''

But Shields said Leskun turned to the Liberal party to take on his
cause in the legislature, as a whistle blower, because he couldn't
defend his charges that guards were dealing drugs.

``People listened to him, checked out his story, and no one could
substantiate the allegations he was making.

``It's not that people didn't act.''