1955 Police Corruption Scandal

The year 1955 was a big one for Vancouver, especially for the police department, which found itself in the middle of a major corruption scandal. This all came to light through a series of events that really shook things up.

It started with a raid on a gambling operation on West 41st Avenue, near Oak Street. The raid itself wasn't the issue, but what happened afterward was. A police constable named Ken Brown was arrested and charged with accepting a bribe. He specifically took a $1,000 payment to tip off this gambling ring about upcoming police raids.

When Brown appeared in court, he didn't just admit his guilt; he also implicated two other officers, Sergeant Leslie H. Porteous and Detective Walter J. McRae, saying they were also involved in taking bribes. This was a huge deal because it suggested the corruption went beyond just one officer.

The police chief at the time, Walter Mulligan, was under a lot of pressure. He initially tried to handle the situation internally, but the city council decided a full public inquiry was necessary. This led to the appointment of Judge Arthur Lord to lead the inquiry.

Over the course of 14 weeks, the inquiry heard testimony from 125 witnesses, and it accumulated 4,000 pages of transcripts. The investigation uncovered a system where police officers were not only taking bribes but also directly participating in criminal activities, such as operating gambling houses and prostitution rings.

The findings were pretty damning. The inquiry concluded that there was widespread corruption within the Vancouver Police Department, with officers protecting illegal operations in exchange for money. This whole scandal led to significant changes in police leadership and procedures in Vancouver, aiming to clean up the department and restore public trust.