A family of a cop who committed suicide after a relationship with bosses is suing VPD

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Nicole Chan died of suicide in January 2019 after nine years in the VPD.

Vancouver Police Officer Nicole Chan died of suicide in January 2019. Photo by VPD

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The family of a former Vancouver cop who took his own life after an intimate relationship with senior officers is suing the city, the British Columbia government, the Vancouver Police Department, the board and union and employees.

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Nicole Chan died of suicide in January 2019 after nine years in the VPD.

An investigation by the Office of the Commissioner of Police Complaints found that a sergeant. David Van Patton had an inappropriate relationship with Chan while serving as a human resources officer in the department. Van Patton was fired a year after Chan’s death for defamatory behavior.

Another officer, a sergeant. Greg McCullough was given a 15-day suspension in 2018 after a relationship with Chan, even though he “knew that (Chan) was in a vulnerable mental and emotional state,” according to the Appeals Committee. McCullough has since resigned from the VPD.

The civil lawsuit alleges that Van Patton and other officers sexually harassed, sexually abused and intimidated Chan, using her rank while she was working as a junior officer. It also says the VPD, the board and the unions have failed to create a safe work culture and policies that have allowed employees’ “guilty behavior” against Chan to continue for years.

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According to the lawsuit, Chan and McCullough began a relationship in 2015, although they were both married to other people. McCullough allegedly did not tell his superiors about the relationship and called on Chan to do the same.

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In early 2016, Chan met Van Patton when she applied for a new position in the VPD. While the app failed, Van Patton began texting and flirting with Chan until he pushed her into an intimate relationship during a business trip. He also failed to tell the employer and called on Chan to keep it a secret, according to the case.

“Van Patton knew or should have known that Nicole was a vulnerable person with a recent history of mental suffering related to intimate relationships between other factors,” the lawsuit said, noting that Van Patton was the employee. on human resources, which deals with Chan’s problems. dossier when she went to her superiors for deteriorating mental health.

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Van Patton is accused of threatening Chan with evidence of her previous relationship with McCullough, with whom he became friends by revealing the relationship between their two husbands. He wanted to continue his sexual relationship with Chan in exchange for not telling Chan’s husband or McCullough’s wife.

The case also alleges that the department did not have adequate policies to protect vulnerable employees like Chan from being exploited by their superiors.

The plaintiffs, including Chan’s mother, are seeking compensation, including loss of enjoyment of life and income support, psychiatric injuries and “nervous shock.” It alleges that “Nicole’s suicide was caused or contributed by the defendants.”

Jen Chan, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of her sister’s property, told Postmedia that her sister complained to the police chief in 2017 about inappropriate relationships with the two senior officials. She was released on stress leave and an internal investigation was launched against the other two employees.

Jen Chan said she believed police officers’ behavior played a role in Nicole’s mental condition, self-esteem and self-worth, which ultimately led to her taking her own life.

The case was filed in January, but it became clear recently. No response was filed and none of the allegations were proven in court.

If you or someone you know has suicidal thoughts, call 1-800-784-2433 (1-800-SUICIDE) or call your local crisis center. Help is available in over 140 languages. You can also contact the mental health support line at 310-6789.

“With a file from Tiffany Crawford.”