CITY HALL – Mayor asks for postponement of code of conduct complaint against councillor
Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson. (Image: Mel Rothenburger)
Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson wants a code of conduct complaint he’s filed against Coun. Dale Bass postponed until a different investigator is appointed.
He said today (June 20, 2025) in a news release he has “serious concerns” about the frequent use of a single legal firm to handle code of conduct complaints. In a letter to CAO Byron McCorkell and councillors, he said he had requested that someone not affiliated with a law firm, or a law firm with no prior ties to the City, be appointed.
Hamer-Jackson acknowledged that he and Vancouver lawyer Reece Harding, who has done several code of conduct investigations for the City, share “a strained professional history.”
He stated, however, that he is not pre-judging “any individual or outcome.”
He also said the selection process for investigators, which is handled by administration, lacks transparency. He’s raised the issue a couple of times during council meetings, asking for the “list” of potential investigators used by staff, but hasn’t received it.
He proposed that members of the Private Investigators Association of B.C. be considered, saying the cost could be a quarter of that charged by lawyers.
He didn’t elaborate on details of his complaint against Bass.
ArmchairMayor.ca 
Let’s start by knowing the cost of the settlement between the municipality and the union after McCorkle did what he did to bylaw officers. $300K salary paid to an individual with the qualifications of a gymnasium instructor. Playing candy crush on your phone, falling asleep during council meetings, and doing stupid things that cost taxpayers millions is not things that should keep you employed in any job, most especially one with such an extravagant, and I may say, totally undeserved salary.
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Many things handled by McCorkell and subordinates “lack transparency”. Too many in fact.
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He is so hyper focussed on these waste of time investigations into … who cares what … that he has no capacity to have any room to properly deal with actu8all issues facing the city … like the massive spending spree the city announced last week, or the increase of taxes to pay for it.
Whatever happened to holding down spending of new pet projects, simply to make sure that taxes will not increase? How about spending the time spent on whining about who investigates what, and stand up for taxpayers?
Just say no.
No to projects that will result in increased taxes … just stop.
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Shall there be the expense of lawyers now for Ms. Bass?
Maybe the court of public opinion is of more importance and that, Mr. Mayor, is free.
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Draining the swamp is not easy when you’re the only one trying.
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It’s fair to ask for an impartial investigator but waiting til the deadline isn’t helping his cause.
Admin pick the investigator and it’s the CAO’s responsibility to hire someone impartial but also justify who he’s picked. This is the 4th investigation by my count that Harding has been responsible for and the previous 3 have all gone against the mayor with one having very dubious circumstances. Observing from afar, the use of Harding seems to be a bit excessive.
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