Halifax

Fired cop hopes to revive lawsuit against force

A former Halifax Regional Police officer who was suspended after his bosses saw him on TV searching for victims of the 9-11 attacks in New York while on stress leave hopes to revive his lawsuit against the force.

James Symington has asked the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal to overturn a Sept. 26 decision by Chief Justice Joseph Kennedy that struck down the suit.

He???s alleging that Chief Justice Kennedy erred in several areas, such as "holding that the adjudicative processes . . . held exclusive jurisdiction over the subject matter of the allegations contained in (Mr. Symington???s) statement of claim."

Mr. Symington sued the force for malicious prosecution, defamation, negligence and intentional inflection of mental suffering both before and after his 2001 suspension.

Mr. Symington claimed police got a search warrant with false information and pursued criminal charges of fraud against him for working as a paid actor while on paid medical leave. Force officials should have known he???d been on medical leave for stress-related illness and not physical injuries at the time, he said in court documents.

Charges against Mr. Symington were dropped and the courts ordered the force to destroy all information related to the charges. The force appealed that decision but eventually dropped its pursuit.

Chief Justice Kennedy ruled that the allegations were directly related to Mr. Symington???s work environment and subsequent disciplinary measures and therefore were covered under the Nova Scotia Police Act.

The decision states that Mr. Symington should have gone to the province???s police review board.

"The Board was capable of providing him with a remedy," Justice Kennedy wrote.

"Presumably, he could have sought judicial review of that decision."

After the force dismissed Mr. Symington???s complaints, the provincial police review board ruled he could not appeal the internal decision.

He took the case to the Nova Scotia Supreme Court but dropped it shortly before the hearing was set to begin and instead forged ahead with the lawsuit.

Mr. Symington claims in court documents that Justice Kennedy???s ruling "creates a two-tiered system" because members of the public not satisfied with a review board???s ruling can appeal to the Nova Scotia Supreme Court, while police officers complaining about the conduct of fellow officers cannot.

Mr. Symington, once head of the force???s K-9 unit, was on long-term disability when he was fired in February 2005. Officials said he didn???t co-operate with their attempts to help him return to the job. His union appealed, but a provincial arbitration panel sided with management.

That September, he received a humanitarian award presented by UN peace messenger Jane Goodall for his efforts during the aftermath of the terrorist attacks.

He and his wife, Angeline McCarthy, have since moved to California, where Mr. Symington is pursuing an acting career.

Although he may no longer be a cop in real life, he???s played one on TV and on the big screen.

Suspended Halifax Regional Police constable Jamie Symington watches as his retired police dog, Trakr, lets out a mighty yawn. His wife, Angeline McCarthy, looks on in the background.