RCMP officers sentenced to jail for beating innocent man

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This article was published 07/12/2011 (5025 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The careers of two veteran RCMP officers inched closer to a premature end this afternoon when they were given jail sentences for their roles in the beating and wrongful arrest of a man three years ago.

Cpl. Jeffrey Thomas Moyse, 42, received a four-month jail sentence for what Justice Perry Schulman said was initiating the assault on Conley Papineau, then 19, in Traverse Bay.

Const. Trevor Ens, 31, was sentenced to four months of house arrest, with a strict curfew. Schulman said Ens had not taken part in the assault but did help Moyse.

Under normal circumstances, the jail sentences would result in an immediate dismissal from the RCMP. However, Ens immediately appealed his conviction and sentence and he’s expected to remain free on bail in the meantime.

Moyse’s defence counsel was not available following the hearing but he too is expected to appeal.

The RCMP issued a statement this afternoon saying both men would retain their jobs while the possibility of an appeal exists, but both men would remain on internal duties with no contact with the public.

Neither man displayed any emotion during the sentencing.

In an unusual gesture for a convicted person, the sheriff’s officers cleared the packed courtroom before Moyse was taken away through a side door and out of public sight.

Schulman said Ens appears to be an individual of exemplary character, adding the only explanation for his actions three years ago was that he must have “succumbed to paramilitary peer pressure.”

Ens’ lawyer, Richard Wolson, said he planned to file an appeal of both the sentence and conviction immediately.

Crown attorney Ryan Rolston said he expected Moyse would also appeal the sentence and conviction.

The sentences to both men will earn them an immediate dismissal from the RCMP. The only way they can hold onto their jobs is if Schulman had given them a discharge, but Schulman said a discharge would not be appropriate.

The RCMP issued a statement saying they would make no comment.

Assistant Commissioner Bill Robinson, commanding officer of D Division, said both men remain on internal duties with no contact with the public, pending their appeals.

Schulman imposed a strict curfew on Ens, allowing him out of his home only for work and four hours per week for personal issues such as medical appointments and other errands approved by a justice-department official assigned to his case.

It’s likely Ens, who had been free on bail before the sentencing, will seek bail while waiting on appeal.