By François Biber

Regina police investigate Saskatoon councillor document leak

Nov 25, 2014 | 11:29 AM

An investigation has been opened after Saskatoon Councillor Pat Lorje breached city council’s code of conduct when she emailed a confidential city report to a member of the public.

News Talk Radio has learned that the Saskatoon police have passed the investigation to the Regina Police Service. Saskatoon Police also confirmed the investigation was opened in late October. 

Lorje told city council Monday she doesn’t plan on resigning after a private investigator discovered the breach to the Cities Act.

“I was elected to represent the citizens of Ward 2 and this city will carry on regardless; I have no intention of resigning,” she said.

On Monday, city councillors and the mayor voted in favour of imposing sanctions on the long-time councillor. Those sanctions limit her access to confidential in-camera documents to water-marked hard copies, which she can only review inside the city clerk’s office at city hall.

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Speaking in her defence, Lorje told council when she emailed the confidential report on June 8, all she was doing was seeking legal advice from a long-time trusted advisor.

A city source confirmed the leaked document went to former Saskatoon MLA Eric Cline, and the report concerned the continuing slope failure affecting homes on 11th Street East in the Nutana neighbourhood.

Cline is listed as having a property at 221 11th Street East.

“I certainly did not intend to be in breach when I was seeking private, independent legal advice from a trusted advisor. I did not consider such member to be a member of the public as defined in the city’s code of conduct,” Lorje said.

Under the province’s Cities Act in section 65(e), members of council shall refrain from disclosing or releasing by any means to any member of the public or the media any confidential information acquired by virtue of their office in either oral or written form, except when required by law or authorized by council to do so.

Lorje told reporters she believes the definition is open to interpretation.

However, Councillor Tiffany Paulsen said the definitions are clear as day in the code of conduct and disagrees that the definition is open to any sort of interpretation.

“It is abundantly clear that a member of the public is anybody who is not present in an in-camera meeting of city council. There is no question,” Paulsen said.

When the city’s executive committee (made up of the mayor and all city councillors) were made aware of a breach in confidentiality, Lorje said she thought it might be her, so she confessed to it and apologized. However the city still hired a private investigator to look at the matter, who later confirmed Lorje was the source of the leak.

The investigation cost the city $2,642.

Paulsen explained that even though the city’s executive committee had Lorje’s apology, council moved ahead with an investigation to make sure no other leaks came from city councillors.

Lorje wouldn’t comment on the contents of the leaked document, nor the person she leaked them too in light of advice given from the city solicitor that any mention of the two would be a further breach of council’s code of conduct.

City council voted to release the authors of the confidential report. However, any more information relating to the report itself could not be discussed according to the city solicitor Patricia Warwick.

“The report in discussion was a report jointly authored by the general manager of transportation and utilities (Jeff Jorgenson) and the city solicitor, and it remains in-camera because it could be injurious to the city in existing or anticipating legal proceedings, and it contains legal advice, and is subject to solicitor-client privilege,” Warwick said.

Council voted in favour of bringing the private investigator’s report on Lorje to the next executive committee meeting where councillors and the mayor will decide whether or not to release the investigator’s report to the public.

Paulsen said it should be released.

Lorje said she understands what her colleagues had to do when they voted for sanctions on her, but she said it won’t interfere with how they do business moving forward.

“They dealt with this in public. I bear no animus to them. I gave them my unreserved apology and we’ll just have to work our way forward,” Lorje said.

Paulsen said if the tables were turned and she was found to have leaked confidential information to a member of the public, she would give up her seat on council.

“I do know council has been inundated with requests for a resignation … If I had purposely leaked a report offered by the solicitor that contained legal, sensitive information and could cause damage to the city, yes I would resign,” she said.

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