Police prosecutor says Paul Manning breached duties, harassed city councillor Sam Merulla
Const. Paul Manning utterly disregarded his duty of confidentiality," harassed Hamilton city councillor Sam Merulla and defied Hamilton police policies on social media use, argued the police prosecutor during Manning's disciplinary hearing Tuesday.
He got on his Twitter soapbox repeatedly to harass Mr. Merulla and disparage his employer," David Migicovsky said during closing submissions before a nearly empty boardroom in an Upper James Street hotel.
Manning did not participate in the hearing process, arguing it was corrupt and that his doctors advised him not to participate.
He is accused of eight counts of discreditable conduct under the Police Services Act in relation to posts he made on Twitter in which he alleged Merulla was tied to the Mob. In one of the tweets, Manning posted a photo that appeared to show Merulla's image alongside now dead Hamilton mobster Pat and Angelo Musitano. He claimed the photo showed targets of the police investigation Project Scopa, which was probing organized crime.
Whether that photo was real or fabricated was part of the evidence heard at the PSA hearing Monday. However, that portion of an intelligence officer's testimony was heard in private. If Manning is found guilty of revealing confidential police information it could mean the photo was real.
Merulla was never charged in relation to Project Scopa. On the witness stand Monday he told the hearing that he's not involved in organized crime and that he's been relentlessly stalked" online by Manning for years.
On Tuesday, Migicovsky said all the witnesses should be believed in their entirety.
You heard in no uncertain terms that Mr. Merulla is not involved in criminal activity," he said. Even if he was, all the more reason for confidentiality."
Manning joined the Hamilton Police Service in 2005, after working as a police officer in London, England. He worked undercover in Hamilton and has alleged his life was endangered when Hamilton police colleagues revealed his identity members of the mafia.
Manning says he has mental health issues as a result. He took a leave of absence in 2013 and was suspended in 2015.
Manning's offending tweets also included posting photos of Merulla's properties and using profane, insulting language.
While Manning mounted no defence, Migicovsky refuted some possible arguments around freedom of expression and whistle-blowing.
Freedom of expression is not unrestricted, particularly for employees of public institutions," he said, adding that police have a duty of loyalty to their police service.
The defence of whistle-blowing only applies if someone is speaking out on an urgent issue of illegality or safety, Migicovsky said. And the individual must first take all reasonable steps to address the matter internally before releasing information publicly.
Migicovsky said neither of these defences apply to Manning.
Hearing officer Greg Walton, a retired OPP superintendent, will return with his decision at a later date.
Nicole O'Reilly is a Hamilton-based reporter covering crime and justice for The Spectator. Reach her via email: noreilly@thespec.com