DISGRACED EX-VPD OFFICER GETS THREE YEARS FOR SELLING POT

Calling Actions ' Predatory', Judge Says Harsh Sentence
Necessary

The "shocking" actions of a former Vancouver police officer who sold
marijuana while on duty deserve severe punishment, said a judge who
handed down a three-year prison sentence Thursday.

Peter Andrew Hodson, 32, was caught last year selling drugs during an
elaborate undercover police operation.

" Your remarkable fall from grace is a burden that will stay with you
for life," Vancouver Provincial Court Judge Gregory Rideout told
Hodson before sheriffs handcuffed him and led him away to begin
serving his sentence.

Hodson, who had been an officer since 2006, pleaded guilty last
November to drug trafficking and three counts of breach of trust,
including one count for improperly accessing a police computer
database known as PRIME.

Prosecutor Joe Bellows had asked Rideout to impose a 3.5 year sentence
on Hodson, who was fired after he was arrested.

Defence lawyer Vince Michaels asked that Hodson serve his time under
house arrest so he can provide for his wife and four children.

The judge found a conditional sentence was inappropriate. " In this
case, the accused became completely disengaged from his moral and
ethical duty to protect and serve," the judge concluded.

" The accused used his badge and his uniform to avoid detection and to
promote the perpetration of his drug trafficking."

He said the message must be sent that police officers who knowingly
engage in criminal activity should be severely punished.

" The accused knowingly embarked upon his predatory criminal
activities with his eyes wide open," the judge said. " He must have
clearly appreciated the potential for serious consequences for his
conduct."

While acknowledging that Hodson had done a lot of volunteer work in
his community and relatives offered glowing letters of support, the
judge found that Hodson committed his crimes for profit and thrill
seeking.

The court was told that at the time Hodson began selling pot on the
job, he was married with three children and had another on the way. He
was also having two affairs. His wife had learned about them and
kicked Hodson out of the family home, so he was experiencing financial
difficulties.

A psychologist who interviewed Hodson several times told the court
that Hodson found police work boring, and sought excitement on the job
through risk-taking.

The judge told Hodson that the people of Vancouver and the police
department were also victims of his illegal actions.

The judge sentenced Hodson to two years in jail for the drug
trafficking, another two years concurrent for the breach of trust in
failing in his duty as a police officer, and an additional one year
for breach of trust related to improper use of the PRIME police
computer. Hodson had used it to check up on Tyson Pappas, a crack
addict resident of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, who was recruited by
Hodson to sell drugs.

Hodson gave Pappas scales and zip-lock bags and suggested the dealer
get business cards to increase profits.

The judge noted that DTES residents are particularly vulnerable and
deserving of police protection.

The judge also imposed a 10-year firearms ban.

During an undercover operation, police observed Hodson buying and
selling drugs using another accomplice, Oscar Lapitan, who also
pleaded guilty and received a one-year conditional sentence.

Before Hodson's arrest in April last year, he made a deal with an
undercover officer to supply half a pound of pot every Friday for $
1,500.