Senior Toronto cop found guilty of investigation interference appeals ruling, demotion

CBC

07-02-2025

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A senior Toronto police officer is appealing a disciplinary tribunal decision that found her guilty of misconduct for interfering in a 2022 collision investigation involving her nephew.
Insp. Joyce Schertzer was demoted to the rank of staff sergeant for nine months in January after the police tribunal's hearing officer, retired OPP Supt. Lisa Taylor, found she circumvented procedure for the benefit of her family when her nephew was allowed to leave a west-end crash site.
"The hearing officer erred in imposing a harsh and excessive penalty that was unwarranted," read the appeal documents, filed on Tuesday with the Ontario Police Arbitration and Adjudication Commission.
Among its 66 grounds of appeal, the documents argue Taylor made "unreasonable findings" throughout her decision, ignored relevant evidence and misstated other evidence.
She also engaged in "speculation" and "hyperbole" when imposing the penalty, according to the documents, written by Schertzer's lawyer, Joanne Mulcahy.
When Taylor handed down the demotion in January, she said "a fully informed citizen would be shocked when considering the actions and inactions of Insp. Schertzer."
But the appeal documents argue Taylor made an error in this assessment. They also say she erred in finding a reasonable citizen who "would expect a strong penalty to follow, exaggerating the conduct and disregarding the overwhelming positive character evidence and exemplary employment history of [Schertzer]."
Schertzer was found guilty of one count of discreditable conduct and another count of neglect of duty under the Police Services Act in August. She is appealing both these rulings and the penalty.
The appeal is asking for the misconduct findings to be overturned and for a penalty less severe than a demotion.
The Toronto Police Service, the respondent in the appeal, declined to comment.
'Unreasonable' to find benefit to family: appeal
The charges stemmed from an incident that happened shortly before noon on May 1, 2022, just outside The Boulevard Club at 1491 Lake Shore Boulevard W., in the city's west end.
Schertzer was working at 11 Division that day when she got a call from her daughter — who is a constable with Toronto police — telling her Schertzer's nephew had been in a collision, the tribunal heard. Video played at hearings showed her nephew driving into a pole.
Schertzer had an officer from 11 Division dispatched to 14 Division where the incident occurred, even though officers generally respond to calls within their own division. The crash happened near the barrier between the two divisions and Schertzer testified she was unaware the site of the incident was outside her division's boundary.
Her nephew was allowed to leave the scene after speaking with Const. Braden Doherty for about 10 minutes.
Schertzer also attended the scene and spoke with Doherty. Doherty testified that he'd asked for Schertzer's permission to turn off his body camera while they spoke.
Her nephew returned to the scene a couple of hours later after Schertzer was contacted by traffic services. He was later ticketed for careless driving, but that ticket was eventually dropped in 2023.
WATCH | Body camera footage shows Schertzer speaking to cop on scene:
Senior Toronto cop facing misconduct charges testifies at tribunal
8 months ago
Duration 2:54
Insp. Joyce Schertzer is facing three misconduct charges for allegedly interfering with an investigation into a single-vehicle collision her nephew was involved in. CBC's Britnei Bilhete has more from the police disciplinary hearing.
During the misconduct probe last year, Schertzer's lawyer argued she attended the scene in her capacity as an aunt and did not interfere in the investigation.
Though Taylor found Schertzer circumvented the police priority system to benefit her family, the appeal documents argue this analysis "was unreasonable and replete with errors."
The 9-month demotion also "[refused] to consider all the credit that [Schertzer] has provided to the reputation of the police service," the documents read.
Schertzer apologized for incident in October
When Taylor handed down the penalty in January, she said Schertzer's misconduct was a "first-time matter" and not seen anywhere else in over 30 years of service.
The tribunal received "copious" letters of support from current and former members of law enforcement, vouching for Schertzer's character and track record, Taylor said — though Tuesday's appeal documents argue Taylor "erred in her treatment" of these letters.
Schertzer tearfully apologized for her conduct during penalty submissions in October.