Matthew Martin has never been charged with a crime. He's never been arrested, pulled over, or received so much as a parking ticket.

So the 29-year-old Saint John man was shocked to be told he had failed a security clearance check required to sit on the Saint John Board of Police Commissioners. 

"I have never had any negative interaction with police," Martin said.

Martin, who is president and CEO of Black Lives Matter New Brunswick, applied to the commission in summer 2020. A City of Saint John news release called for "citizens from all backgrounds to get involved."

The Saint John police commission is tasked with helping maintain an adequate police force and advising common council on police funding decisions.

Growing up in the old north end, Martin said, meant he regularly saw police doing drop-ins at local community centres and dealing with his friends and family members. That, he said, gave him perspective on where the force could improve. 

Main Street north, where Martin grew up. At the Saint John Board of Police Commissioners, 'individuals who live in priority neighbourhoods, who could really bring the perspective to the table, are not being invited to the table,' he said. (Julia Wright/CBC)

On the police commission, he said, he hoped to "bring the perspective of an individual who interacts regularly with police."

Martin also sits on the chief's advisory committee, a group intended to "increase diversity, inclusion, transparency, and accountability" in Saint John's policing service.

Father, brothers have criminal records

More than a year passed between Martin's initial application and an Aug. 31, 2021, email from the city clerk's office saying he had "been recommended by Council for appointment to the Saint John Board of Police Commissioners for the next opening in November," pending a security clearance. 

On Nov. 30, 2021, City of Saint John administrative officer Richard Evans wrote back, "we have been informed that you did not pass the security clearance check" and advised Martin he was "not eligible to be appointed."

Martin said no one told him specifically what happened to his recommendation. 

Saint John Mayor Reardon, who chairs the nominating committee for city boards and commissions, said the requirements for appointments to the police commission should be clarified. (Julia Wright/CBC)

The Level 2 security clearance form contains the disclaimer "to protect the confidentiality of sources, the Saint John Police Force will not provide detailed reasons for any failure to pass the security screening process."

But Martin believes he knows why he failed to pass the check.

A section on the security clearance form asks for information on a long list of the applicant's immediate family members, ranging from parents and siblings to in-laws and their spouses. 

"I come from a poverty neighborhood. My father has a criminal record and my brothers have a criminal record," said  Martin, who grew up in the area around Main Street North.  

"But myself, I kept my nose clean and really tried to focus on my future life.

"If we look at the facts, that is the only factor that I can see coming into play: the criminal record of someone in my past," Martin said. 

WATCH | President Black Lives Matter N.B. turned down for city police commission spot: 

Commission responds

While Doug Jones, the vice-chair of the police commission, said he had no knowledge of Martin's specific situation, having a close family member with a criminal record could compromise sensitive information.  

"If I had a brother that was a member of an outlaw group of some kind, the chances of me getting a security clearance would be relatively small, I would think," Jones said. 

"You could potentially be put in a situation where you might be conflicted, or inadvertently information would get shared."

Insp. Anika Becker with the Kennebecasis Regional Police Force, the third-party agency that conducted Martin's security check, said, "we use the names and dates of birth to determine if someone has a criminal record. If someone identified on the list of immediate family members has a criminal record, we do flag it, but we don't say what it is or who it is. We process it and send it back." 

Insp. Anika Becker works for the Kennebecasis Regional Police Force, the organization that conducted the security check on Martin. 'If someone identified on the list of immediate family members has a criminal record, we do flag it, but we don't say what it is or who it is,' she said. (Roger Cosman/CBC)

Requiring a security clearance to sit on a police commission "is common in other jurisdictions in Canada, and has been followed in Saint John for over 15 years," Nathalie Logan, a communications officer with the City of Saint John, said in an emailed statement.  

'Biases can be pro-police as well'

But just because a policy is common doesn't mean it is fair, according to Michael Boudreau, professor of criminology and criminal justice at St. Thomas University in Fredericton, N.B.

While the intention of a security check may be to screen for anti-police bias or potential conflicts of interest, "biases can be pro-police as well. If you have not had any interactions with police, you might think the police can do no wrong."

Since people are hesitant to publicly admit they or a family member has been in contact with the law, in most cases the public will never know who applies to a police commission and is rejected. 

Society is changing, and policing and police oversight need to reflect that diversity, according to Michael Boudreau, a professor of criminology and criminal justice at St. Thomas University in Fredericton, N.B. (Submitted by St. Thomas University )

"You may not want to [speak out] publicly because you may feel embarrassed by that, or you don't want to put your family member in that situation.

"We don't hear about this as often as we should. I suspect that it does happen more often than we know."

Some municipal police commissions, Boudreau said, are "essentially rubber stamps for everything the police do and say — and that is not their role. Their role should be to look more carefully and critically at what the police do."

Most important, "we are a changing, diverse society, which is a very positive thing," he said. "Policing and police oversight needs to reflect that diversity, and currently neither are really doing that properly."

Privilege versus poverty

Martin said his situation is about "privilege versus poverty," not race. 

"​​I have a clean criminal record, so why is it fair, because of my upbringing and the family I was born into, that I'm being punished for their choices?"

Jones said the security clearance requirement for the police commission will remain in place for the time being — but individuals like Martin are welcome to contribute in other ways.

"There are certain criteria you have to meet to be on the commission, but that doesn't mean that we're not open to hearing those perspectives and voices. There are different ways to share that and take advantage of the people who want to contribute, and we are more than happy to do so."

Saint John Mayor Donna Reardon, who chairs the nominating committee for city agencies, boards, and commissions declined to comment on Martin's situation, but said it would "make sense for the requirements for appointments to the police commission to be clarified, which would require the nominating committee to direct the general counsel's office to conduct a review."

"We have emerging community interest in policing, and it would be appropriate to update this," she said. 

'What is this system being designed to do?'

Martin said he doesn't feel heard in this process. 

"The city continues to talk about being diverse, equitable, and inclusive — but their policies and their actions are not showing it, and it's clear in this situation.

"Every system is designed to get the results that it gets," he said. "So my question is: what is this system being designed to do?

"Right now, it looks like it is designed to keep those with privilege on these boards, and those individuals who live in priority neighbourhoods, who could really bring the perspective to the table, are not being invited to the table."

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of.

Last year, the Nova Scotia government was considering a proposal from New Brunswick that would see the two neighbouring provinces collaborate on a serious incident response team, commonly called a SIRT.

That was weeks after police officers in the province shot and killed 26-year-old Chantel Moore, a Nuu-chah-nulth woman of Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation in B.C., and 48-year-old Rodney Levi of Metepenagiag First Nation, only a few days apart.

Since New Brunswick doesn't have its own serious incident response team, both shootings were investigated separately by Quebec's Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes, or BEI, an agency that has come under fire for its lack of Indigenous investigators.

Chantel Moore, 26, and Rodney Levi, 48, were shot and killed by police in New Brunswick eight days apart. CBC has permission from Moore's family to use this photo. (CBC)

Following those investigations, New Brunswick's Public Prosecutions Services said in January it would not lay criminal charges against the Sunny Corner RCMP officer who shot and killed Levi, and in June, said it would also not lay charges against the Edmundston Police Force officer who fatally shot Moore during a wellness check.

• New Brunswick police officer who fatally shot Chantel Moore won't be charged
• No charges planned against RCMP officer in fatal shooting of Rodney Levi

The director of Nova Scotia's SIRT, Felix Cacchione, told CBC News last year that the deaths of Moore and Levi, which also prompted calls for a provincial public inquiry into systemic racism, had led to "renewed conversation" about collaborating on such an agency.

But a year later, Cacchione said, he's "heard nothing further on this matter" and referred questions to the Nova Scotia government.

Discussions, but no decision

Heather Fairbairn, a spokesperson for Nova Scotia's Department of Justice, confirmed there have been discussions on the idea of collaboration, but no decision has been made.

No one from the department was made available for an interview and when asked to elaborate on what might be holding up such a decision, Fairbairn said the department has no further comment.

Amendments to the province's Police Act were introduced in May, but they don't include the creation of a SIRT.

Earlier this year, New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs seemed to rule out the idea of the province creating its own standalone agency, opting for a regional approach instead.

• Premier rules out standalone New Brunswick police watchdog agency

A spokesperson for the Department of Justice and Public Safety, which didn't provide an interview for this story, said work continues on the initiative.

"The creation of a SIRT Team for New Brunswick is supported by police chiefs, municipalities, frontline police officers and the New Brunswick Police Commission," Coreen Enos wrote in an email.

"A regional agency serving more than one province is one of the various options being considered."

N.B. Mi'kmaw communities called for independent agency

Representatives from the nine Mi'kmaw communities in New Brunswick have had "preliminary discussions" with the province about the creation of a policing oversight agency, according to Mi'gmawe'l Tplu'taqnn Incorporated, a non-profit organization created by the nine communities.

"Last summer, when the Province of NB asked for recommendations on how to improve the justice system, [Mi'gmawe'l Tplu'taqnn Incorporated] expressed concerns specifically with BEI and recommended the Province create their own independent investigative body for police misconduct," a statement from Metepenagiag First Nation Chief Bill Ward said.

Ward said another meeting is planned with the Department of Justice and Public Safety next month, and the communities hope it will be productive.

Metepenagiag First Nation Chief Bill Ward says representatives from the province's nine Mi'kmaw communities have met with the Department of Justice and Public Safety. (Gary Moore/CBC)

Police chiefs in the province also support the idea of an independent agency, according to Edmundston Police Chief Alain Lang, who is the president of the New Brunswick Association of Chiefs of Police.

Lang said the creation of such an agency was in the works already last summer, but the deaths of Moore and Levi "accelerated it a little bit more faster."

"Police investigating police officers, that's always been a hot topic, even though we're professional, and we do what we need, but transparency needs to be there," Lang said in an interview.

"Also, we don't like to be the ones that investigate that, and then the public thinks we're not doing a right job. This way, it'll be more transparent, we'll gain pubalic trust that way, and if charges need to be approved, they will be approved by the provincial Crown."

Finding independent investigators a challenge, police chief says

Kennebecasis Regional police Chief Wayne Gallant has been advocating an independent police oversight agency dating back to when he was a senior leader in the New Brunswick RCMP.

He said the Kennebecasis force hasn't had a large number of incidents that required independent investigation, "but the fact is that when you need that capacity, you really need it."

"Police Forces continue to face challenges in finding truly independent investigators of matters that require such independence," Gallant wrote in an email.

Kennebecasis Regional police Chief Wayne Gallant has been an advocate of creating an independent police oversight agency in New Brunswick. (Matthew Bingley/CBC)

Robert Bruce, the new chief of police with the Saint John Police Force, spent his career with the Ontario Provincial Police before starting his job in Saint John on July 1.

He would also like to see an independent agency to investigate incidents involving police in New Brunswick and was surprised to see the province doesn't have one.

"I think it just adds a level of transparency, it adds another level of accountability," Bruce said in an interview.

"It also takes the pressure off individual police forces to kind of investigate their own as well. There's a lot of pressure, resources and such that go into that."

If the province does create an oversight body, he would like to see it be transparent with the public, including timely release of information about investigations.

Bruce said that's been one issue with Ontario's Special Investigations Unit (SIU), which is tasked with investigating incidents involving police and peace officers "where there is a serious injury, death, allegation of sexual assault or discharge of a firearm by an official at a person."

N.B. RCMP requested outside reviews for 2 incidents in last month

In the last month, the New Brunswick RCMP has requested outside reviews of two separate incidents involving officers.

In early July, Quebec's BEI was called in after a video appeared to show an RCMP officer striking a Campbellton man during an arrest.

Last week, the New Brunswick RCMP asked an investigator with the Prince Edward Island RCMP to conduct a review, after an arrest in the Tracadie-Sheila area on July 26.

New Brunswick RCMP have asked outside agencies or police forces to investigate incidents involving officers twice in the last month. (Shane Magee/CBC file photo)

Ouellette declined to say how many cases, dating back to 2018, were referred to outside agencies that could have been investigated by SIRT, if New Brunswick had one.

"It would be inappropriate to speculate on what the RCMP would have submitted to SIRT if we had one, as there is no independent review agency or criteria for referral currently in New Brunswick," Ouellette said.

He said the police force works closely with the Department of Justice and Public Safety on policing, "including their intent to set up a serious incident review team for New Brunswick."

"In the interim, the RCMP will continue to be diligent in requesting external reviews of critical incidents involving our police officers," Ouellette said.

"We are committed to understanding the ways we could have done things differently to improve outcomes for everyone involved."

Don Darling announced he was leaving the commission in an online post Monday.

In the post, he said governance rules have previously stopped him from voicing opinion and "sharing observations" about how best to reform the city's police force, and he wants to spend his last six months as mayor avoiding "barriers and restrictions" placed through board rules. 

"It allows me to to be unfiltered and talk about the types of reforms that I believe are necessary," he said in an interview Monday. "It's about being able to speak freely ... and be blunt and very honest with citizens in this community."

Darling said needed police reforms are not happening fast enough, specifically in terms of narrowing the scope of the police force's role in the community, and addressing systemic racism.

"It's about having meaningful conversation about policing, keeping the peace, having police get back to core policing, having conversations about housing, food security, mental health, drug and addiction support," he said.

The police commission did not return a request for interview by publication time.

'Broken' relationship

In the post, Darling said he believes the police force needs to be more transparent, but did not specify how.

He also called for a better relationship between management and the police union.

"It's broken today, not sustainable financially," he said.

He said the consequences of this relationship is that "we're going to continue to frame this conversation by the union as simply needing more and more and more money."

In an interview, Saint John Police Association president and police officer Duane Squires said he disagrees with Darling on this point, and says the union does not ask for more money than they deserve.

However he agrees that reform is needed. Specifically, making sure police are responding only to calls where they are needed, not to issues like small traffic accidents and when someone finds a needle on the ground.

Const. Duane Squires, Saint John Police Association president, says he agrees that reform is needed. (Twitter/Uptown Saint John)

Squires said another aspect of reform would be narrowing the police's involvement in mental health calls, allowing mental health professionals and social workers to take the lead.

He said there is a link between how much police get paid and how much work is expected of them.

"The more things that get downloaded to us, the more work you do, we do argue that we should be paid more," Squires said. "A review of the types of calls that we go to would be great if there's other organizations that step up and actually deal with the issues outside of Monday to Friday at the force."

He said the force is already trying to connect to the community, but acknowledges more work needs to be done.

During his five-year tenure, the heart-on-his-sleeve mayor of Saint John presided over a tumultuous series of events that included an oil refinery explosion, devastating floods, a cyber attack and a pandemic.

Even before the municipal election dust settled in May of this year, he'd made no secret of wanting a change of pace.

Months later, he made that change happen in a most unexpected and inspiring way.

Darling and his wife, Patti, recently sold their house in Saint John, bought a fifth-wheel RV, bundled up their golden retriever, Gus, and set out for a cross-Canada road trip with no particular end destination in mind.

On Friday, Darling spoke to Information Morning Saint John from his "absolutely magical" latest stop, Alberta's Banff National Park in Alberta.

"We're staring right out our window at nothing but mountains," he said. "It's spectacular."

It's a far cry from the trials of running a city, with all the stress and social media trolling that comes with it, and a drastic life change. 

• RVing takes off as pandemic sparks renewed interest in camping

But it's a change Darling said he and Patti have been mentally moving toward for several years now, even before the pandemic crystallized their plan.

"We're in our 50s now and combined [we] have worked almost 70 years. Despite the fear, we chose the courage to leave the place that will always be home for us, and our home base, and to get out and live and have these amazing experiences."

Later today, he said, they'll be going to the hot springs to experience 47-degree water. Yesterday, they travelled from Banff toward Jasper and went on a tour of the area's fabled turquoise glacier lakes.

"These places are absolutely breathtaking," Darling said. "And that is fulfilling the mission, to live now, to do purposeful and meaningful work, to live our values and to wake up every day with a smile on our faces."

Of course, he said, RV life isn't all roses.

The words "smiles" and "fulfilment" don't immediately spring to mind while navigating a vehicular behemoth through Montreal traffic, and there are challenges that come with living "two feet away from each other," Darling said.

• N.B. university grads embark on cross-Canada adventure in converted school bus 

"There isn't a day that hasn't had some hiccups in it for us," he said. But neither has there been a day when they haven't had opportunities to be grateful and to see things they would never have seen in their former lives, he added.

"We have a place to cook, we have a place to clean, we have a comfortable bedroom, Gus is comfortable as well ... we have everything we need."

The Darlings' golden retriever, Gus, has adapted quite nicely to RV life, Darling says. 'He naps, look out the window, plays a bit and, is not one bit stressed.' (Twitter/@dondarlingSJ )

Plans to remarry in Las Vegas

In three weeks, the Darlings have already made 14 of a planned 91 stops on their 14,430-km adventure.

"We've got a huge trip ahead of us and we're just at the beginning of this epic journey," Darling said.

A week from now, they'll head to Vancouver and Vancouver Island and down the West Coast toward San Francisco.

Then, as the U.S. opens up, it'll be on to Las Vegas, where they'll get remarried and celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary.

"If the Vegas chapel will allow Gus to have a tuxedo on, that's the chapel we're going to choose," Darling said with a laugh.

Darling said there's no question the restrictions and eye-openers of the pandemic helped persuade him and Patti to take up this freewheeling adventure.

And for those who think they'd like to do something similar but are feeling stuck in a rut, he offers this advice.  

Ask yourself, "What are the things in your life that you're happy about, and what are the things that you're not?"

If you don't like the city or the job or the life you are currently in, he said, if there is something you're dreaming of doing, take the leap and change it. 

"What COVID taught us is how fragile life could be," Darling said. "We were no longer willing to put off the dreams we had for some other day."