The Serious Incident Response Team, or SIRT, investigates matters such as death, serious injury, sexual assault or other public-interest concerns involving police.

The civilian-led investigation team ensures a more transparent and independent way to investigate serious criminal matters against police. 

It can independently launch an investigation or begin an investigation after a referral from a chief of police, the head of the RCMP in Nova Scotia or the Minister of Justice. It will also accept complaints from the public.

The creation of this team was done through consultation with key policing partners, the Public Prosecution Service and academics, and then shared with a broader group for feedback.

The Team

The Serious Incident Report Team includes:

• Director (Civilian)
• Two civilian investigators
• Two full-time seconded police officers
• Other police resources, as required
• Administrative support

The team will operate independently of law enforcement agencies, with decision-making authority residing with the civilian team director.

The combination of civilian and seconded police officers is required to achieve a balance between independence and operational effectiveness.

Under the enabling amendments to the Police Act, a former police officer cannot be director of SIRT.

The budget of this program is about $800,000 annually.  The province will cover all administrative and overhead costs associated with the Director, provincial investigators and administrative support. There will be some in-kind costs from municipalities when they provide assistance during investigations.

The cost to municipalities using the SIRT could potentially be much less than the costs currently incurred for financing an investigation into an incident that occurs in their jurisdiction. 

Ron MacDonald, Q.C., Director

Ron MacDonald, Q.C., has been a lawyer since 1985. He has spent his career working within the criminal justice system. He started his career as defence counsel for 6 years, spent 17 years as a Crown Attorney, before becoming a criminal law policy advisor at Nova Scotia’s Department of Justice for the last three years. Read full bio (PDF)