Coun. Janz facing complaint over retweet calling police officer a 'pig'
An Edmonton city councillor on Monday both apologized for a social media post he shared and called an attempt to have him sanctioned for it a "smear job."
On May 29, Janz retweeted a post from a man in Calgary who referred to a police officer as a "pig."
The Ward papastew representative said he did so to highlight what he feels were instances of policing favouring drivers over cyclists. Janz claims he didn't initially notice the "pig" reference but deleted it when he was made aware of it.
"I apologize to anyone who was offended by this and who has concerns with it…Twitter moves fast. You make spelling errors, you make mistakes, you delete them, you move on," Janz said in an interview with CTV News Edmonton.
Integrity Commissioner Jamie Pytel is now looking into the matter as a code of conduct complaint, Janz said.
The man who filed the complaint said Janz sharing the tweet was "very disrespectful" to members of the Edmonton Police Service.
"Cut the derogatory language like 'pigs.' You know, we see in the public, we get the sense (Janz) has a hate for the police. I want them to be resolved," resident Thomas Deak told CTV News Edmonton.
Earlier this year, Janz was cleared by Pytel for tweets critical of police. The Edmonton Police Association launched the complaint in that case. The commissioner concluded that Janz was exercising an opinion on a topic of public interest.
Janz said he felt the new complaint was an effort to silence him.
"This whole thing feels like a bit of a fishing trip. It's a vexatious waste of taxpayers time and dollars," he said. "Anyone who's on social media knows that retweets are not endorsements."
Edmonton's Council Code of Conduct requires councillors to "conduct themselves with decorum at all times" and refrain from "disrespectful" language towards others.
A violation of the code could lead to a councillor being forced to apologize or required to attend "specialized training." Councillors can also be suspended from certain roles, if a council vote approves that.
Janz tweeted an apology on Tuesday.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Chelan Skulski
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canada's most wanted fugitive arrested in P.E.I. in connection with Toronto homicide
A suspect in a fatal shooting in Toronto’s east end last summer has been arrested in Charlottetown, just one week after he topped a list of Canada’s most wanted fugitives.
BREAKING Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
Concerns about plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall plexiglass barriers.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Poilievre returns to House unrepentant for calling Trudeau 'wacko,' Speaker not resigning
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Toddler of Phoenix first responder dies after bounce house goes airborne
A two-year-old child died after a strong gust of wind sent the bounce house he was in airborne and into a neighbouring lot in central Arizona, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said.
Plane overshoots runway at airport in St. John's, N.L., no injuries reported
Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada are headed to St. John's, N.L., after a plane overshot a runway at the city's airport this afternoon.
A teen was found buried in a basement in New York. An engraved ring helped police learn her identity two decades later
For more than two decades, the unknown victim was nicknamed "Midtown Jane Doe" because she was found in the Hell's Kitchen neighbourhood of New York City. But this week, investigators finally revealed her identity.