The Sarnia Police Service is revising its policy to eliminate any perception of bias in its investigations.
The action comes after Ontario court judge Deborah Austin slammed the force's handling of the Dave Brubaker investigation.
In her decision to acquit the former gymnastics coach of sex-related charges, the judge criticized a city officer for taking on the sole investigative role when he had close family ties to the complainant.
Police Chief Norm Hansen said while they aren't specifically investigating the officer, it's necessary to prevent a similar situation in the future.
"We're a small community. I myself, when I was a detective, ran into a couple of situations where I knew people that were involved in the investigations," said Hansen. "It's unavoidable sometimes. You don't want to give the public the appearance of bias. I have every confidence in my officers that they would act in a fair manner, but sometimes perception is reality to the public. We have to address that for sure."
Chief Hansen said it'll now be incumbent on an officer to inform a supervisor if they know anyone involved in a case, and it will be reassigned.
He said they're working with the professional standards branch to see if any other changes need to be made.
