Trial date for accused St’atl’imx Tribal cop will be set Feb. 26

Cop's trial date to be set

Photo: Photo submitted.

A trial date for accused Stl’atl’imx Tribal Police Service Cst. Michael English is expected to be set on Feb. 26.

A trial date will be set next week for a Stl’atl’imx Tribal Police Service (STPS) officer facing multiple charges related to allegedly filming sexual acts without his partners’ consent.

Cst. Michael English was formally charged in September with three counts of voyeurism in connection to offences alleged to have occurred while he was off-duty in Pemberton and Vancouver between 2020 and 2022. He was subsequently placed on administrative leave while the investigation was ongoing.

On Wednesday, Jan. 8, English’s legal counsel told a North Vancouver court the officer plans to enter a not-guilty plea, and has requested a trial in front of a provincial judge. A pre-trial hearing was held in Victoria last Thursday, Feb. 13 that was ultimately adjourned until next Wednesday, Feb. 26, when a trial date is expected to be set.

Counsel estimated the trial should take about five days.

Because the alleged offences took place outside of STPS jurisdiction, the case was assigned to the Sea to Sky RCMP’s General Investigative Section, with additional oversight provided by senior investigators from the Lower Mainland District RCMP. The matter has also been referred to the Office of Police Complaints Commission, B.C.’s independent, civilian oversight agency.

The Stl’atl’imx Tribal Police Service is the only self-administered First Nations Police Service in B.C., and operates in 10 participating St'at'imc communities in the Lillooet and Pemberton area. Officers are designated as provincial constables.