March 3, 2021

Winnipeg
-11° C, Clear

Full Forecast

Contact Us Subscribe Manage Subscription Chat with us
Log in Create Free Account Help Chat with us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertising Contact
    • Submit a News Tip
    • Subscribe to Newsletters

    • Finding your
      information

    • My Account
    • Manage my Subscription
    • Change Password

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate

    • Log Out
    • Log in
    • Create Free Account
    • Help

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate
  • Coronavirus Coverage
  • Replica E-Edition
    • About the E-Edition
    • Winnipeg Free Press
    • The Herald
    • The Headliner
    • The Lance
    • The Metro
    • The Sou'Wester
    • The Times
  • Above the Fold
  • Front page
  • Arts & Life
    • All Arts & Life
    • The Arts
    • Autos
    • Books
    • Book Club
    • Cannabis
    • Celebrities
    • Diversions
    • Puzzles
    • Environment
    • Events
    • Faith
    • Food & Drink
    • Your Health
    • Life & Style
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Science & Technology
    • TV
    • Travel
  • Business
    • All Business
    • Agriculture
    • Personal Finance
  • Canada
  • Local
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Send a Letter to the Editor
  • Sports
    • All Sports
    • Amateur
    • Auto Racing
    • Blue Bombers
    • Curling
    • Football
    • Goldeyes
    • Golf
    • High School
    • Hockey
    • Horse Racing
    • Winnipeg Jets
    • Manitoba Moose
    • WHL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • Olympics
    • Soccer
  • World
  • About Us
    • About Us
    • Advertising
    • Contact Us
    • Carrier Positions & Retailer Requests
    • FP Newspapers Inc.
    • History
    • Internships
    • Job Opportunities
    • News Café
    • Privacy Policy
    • Retail Locations
    • Staff Biographies
    • Terms and Conditions
  • Archives
  • Canstar Community News
    • All Canstar Community News
    • The Headliner
    • The Herald
    • The Lance
    • The Metro
    • The Sou'wester
    • The Times
    • Sports
    • Events
    • Contact Us
    • E-Editions
  • Classifieds
  • Contests
  • Coupons
    • All Coupons
    • Staples Copy & Print Coupons
    • Ripley's Aquariums Coupons
    • The Bay Coupons
    • Staples Canada Coupons
    • Altitude Sports Coupons
    • Nike Coupons
    • Tuango Coupons
    • Ebay Canada Coupons
    • Sport Chek Coupons
    • Roots Coupons
  • Sponsored
    • Publications
    • Sponsored Articles
  • Flyers
  • Homes
    • Property Listings
    • Featured News
    • Renovation and design
    • New homes
    • Resale homes
  • Newsletters
  • Obituaries
  • Puzzles
  • Photostore
  • More

©2021 FP Newspaper Inc.

Close
  • Quick Links

    • Coronavirus Coverage
    • Above the Fold
    • Home
    • Local
    • Canada
    • World
    • Classifieds
    • Special Coverage
    • Flyers
    • Newsletters
    • Obituaries
    • Photostore
    • Archives
    • Contests
    • Publications
    • Sponsored Content
    • Privacy Policy

    Ways to support us

    • Pay it Forward program
    • Subscribe
    • Day Pass
    • Read Now Pay later
  • Replica E-Edition

    • About the E-Edition
    • Winnipeg Free Press
    • The Herald
    • The Headliner
    • The Lance
    • The Metro
    • The Sou'Wester
    • The Times

    Business

    • All Business
    • Agriculture
    • Personal Finance
  • Arts & Life

    • All Arts & Life
    • The Arts
    • Autos
    • Books
    • Cannabis
    • Celebrities
    • Diversions
    • Puzzles
    • Environment
    • Events
    • Faith
    • Food & Drink
    • Your Health
    • Life & Style
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Science & Technology
    • TV
    • Travel
  • Sports

    • All Sports
    • Amateur
    • Auto Racing
    • Blue Bombers
    • Curling
    • Football
    • Goldeyes
    • Golf
    • High School
    • Hockey
    • Horse Racing
    • Winnipeg Jets
    • Manitoba Moose
    • WHL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • Olympics
    • Soccer
  • Opinion

    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Send a Letter to the Editor

    Media

    • All Media
    • Photo Galleries
    • Videos

    Homes

    • Property Listings
    • Featured News
    • Renovation and design
    • New homes
    • Resale homes
  • Canstar Community News

    • All Canstar Community News
    • The Headliner
    • The Herald
    • The Lance
    • The Metro
    • The Sou'wester
    • The Times
    • Sports
    • Events
    • Contact Us
    • E-Editions
  • Coupons

    • All Coupons
    • Staples Copy & Print Coupons
    • Ripley's Aquariums Coupons
    • The Bay Coupons
    • Staples Canada Coupons
    • Altitude Sports Coupons
    • Nike Coupons
    • Tuango Coupons
    • Ebay Canada Coupons
    • Sport Chek Coupons
    • Roots Coupons
  • About Us

    • About Us
    • Advertising
    • Contact Us
    • Carrier Positions & Retailer Requests
    • FP Newspapers Inc.
    • History
    • Internships
    • Job Opportunities
    • News Café
    • Privacy Policy
    • Retail Locations
    • Staff Biographies
    • Terms and Conditions
Winnipeg Free Press
Articles Read
Your Balance +tax
Day Pass Till
Day Pass
    • Contact Us
    • Advertising Contact
    • Report an Error
    • Send a Letter to the Editor
    • Staff Biographies
    • Submit a News Tip
    • Subscribe to Newsletters

    • Finding your
      information

    • Log in
    • Create Account
    • Help
    • Chat with us

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate
    • My Account
    • Manage My Subscription
    • Change Password
    • Chat with us

    • Grid View
    • List View
    • Compact View
    • Text Size
    • Translate

    • Log Out
Log in Create Account Contact Us
Contact Us Manage Subscription
  • Sections
  • Local
  • Arts & Life
    • All Arts & Life
    • The Arts
    • Autos
    • Books
    • Diversions
    • Environment
    • Faith
    • Food & Drink
    • Health
    • Movies
    • Music
    • TV
    • Travel
  • Business
  • Sports
    • All Sports
    • Amateur
    • Blue Bombers
    • Curling
    • Football
    • Goldeyes
    • High School
    • Hockey
    • Winnipeg Jets
    • Manitoba Moose
    • WHL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • Soccer
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Columnists
    • Editorials
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Send a Letter to the Editor
  • E-Edition
  • Homes
  • Classifieds
    • All Classifieds
    • Announcements
    • Automotive
    • Careers
    • Garage Sales
    • Merchandise
    • Pets
    • Real Estate
    • Rentals
    • Services
  • Sponsored
    • Publications
    • Sponsored Articles
  • Coupons
    • All Coupons
    • Staples Copy & Print
    • Ripley's Aquariums
    • The Bay
    • Staples Canada
    • Altitude Sports
    • Nike
    • Tuango
    • Ebay Canada
    • Sport Chek
    • Roots
  • Obituaries
  • Subscribe
Home Local

Advertisement

Advertise With Us

Police say officer's transfer rocked homicide unit

Mike McIntyre By: Mike McIntyre
Posted: 1:00 AM CDT Thursday, Jul. 7, 2011

  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Print
  • Email

A troubling picture is emerging of the Winnipeg police homicide unit -- one that includes bullish management, poor communication, low morale and a lack of experienced investigators.

Two homicide unit members testified Wednesday that the eight-person team was rocked earlier this year by the sudden transfer of Staff Sgt. James Jewell. They pointed the finger directly at police brass who they believe tried to send Jewell a message at the expense of the unit's high-stakes work.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 6/7/2011 (3527 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A troubling picture is emerging of the Winnipeg police homicide unit -- one that includes bullish management, poor communication, low morale and a lack of experienced investigators.

Two homicide unit members testified Wednesday that the eight-person team was rocked earlier this year by the sudden transfer of Staff Sgt. James Jewell. They pointed the finger directly at police brass who they believe tried to send Jewell a message at the expense of the unit's high-stakes work.

Jewell filed a grievance with the provincial labour board, saying he was the victim of a "punitive" act for speaking out about changes in the department, including the pending transfer of two investigators. He learned of his transfer on March 15 -- four days after going above his chain-of-command to appeal to Chief Keith McCaskill.

"It makes absolutely no sense. I was completely shocked. I was angry. I just didn't understand the logic behind it," Det.-Sgt. Darryl Kostiuk told arbitrator Arne Peltz during the second day of a week-long public hearing. Det.-Sgt. Wes Rommel said senior management provided no explanation for the decision to remove Jewell but everyone knew the real reason. The unit is struggling to deal with the fallout, he said.

"Sgt. Jewell was an excellent leader. He has a passion and zest, not only for homicide but police work in general. He created an environment where everyone could have their say," Rommel said. "This was a detriment to the unit."

Police brass say Jewell was transferred as part of an attempt to take the homicide unit in a new direction and not as a form of punishment. But Jewell and his former investigators said that makes no sense considering the only other supervisor in the unit, Staff Sgt. Ken Shipley, retired earlier this year.

All of the officers testified that removing Jewell only weeks after Shipley's exit left the homicide unit without experienced leadership. As well, there had been major turnover among the eight investigators -- the exact issue Jewell had fought to prevent.

"I thought this was completely unfair. I've always heard the chief has an open door. What Sgt. Jewell was doing was for the good of the unit and the betterment of the police service to ensure experienced officers stayed in the unit," said Kostiuk. "This goes against everything I've ever heard about succession planning. It appears they were trying to fix something that wasn't broken."

Jewell, a police officer for 24 years, was appointed as a supervising sergeant of the homicide unit in 2009. He expressed concern about a policy that moves homicide investigators out of the unit after three years and was asked by senior management to sit on a committee last year to study homicide unit operations. One recommendation was to increase tenure to five years, but brass ignored that finding, Jewell said.

Stay informed

The latest updates on the novel coronavirus and COVID-19.

Subscribe to COVID-19 Briefing
Sign Up

Jewell learned earlier this year that two homicide investigators were to be transferred after three years, as per existing policy.

He asked his direct supervisors, Staff Sgt. Mike Stephens and Insp. Rick Guyader, to give them extensions, but his request was denied. Guyader and Stephens had started with the homicide unit weeks earlier, replacing the team that brought Jewell on board.

Jewell said he then met with McCaskill, though Stephens warned him "certain people aren't going to be impressed by you going over their heads," and was told the transfers would go through. Four days later, Jewell was shown the door.

"The chain of command I was dealing with was not only acting hypocritically, but acting without a lot of integrity," Jewell said Wednesday. "I think there's an expectation from employees that they will be treated fairly. Principles aren't just for rank-and-file members. They should go from the top all the way to the bottom."

The hearing continues today with Guyader's testimony. McCaskill is also expected to testify this week.

www.mikeoncrime.com

Mike McIntyre

Mike McIntyre
Reporter

Mike McIntyre grew up wanting to be a professional wrestler. But when that dream fizzled, he put all his brawn into becoming a professional writer.

   Read full biography
   Sign up for Mike McIntyre’s email newsletter, On Sports

Advertisement

Advertise With Us

  • Report Error
  • Submit a Tip
  • Refund

The Winnipeg Free Press invites you to share your opinion on this story in a letter to the editor. A selection of letters to the editor are published daily.

To submit a letter:
• fill out the form on this page, or
• email letters@freepress.mb.ca, or
• mail Letters to the Editor, 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R2X 3B6.

Letters must include the writer’s full name, address, and a daytime phone number. Letters are edited for length and clarity.

Advertisement

Advertise With Us

Top