Misconduct charges dropped against 2 Toronto officers in Tess Richey murder case
According to documents released in 2018, the officers did not search the adjoining property where the 22-year-old woman was last seen, did not canvass the neighbours, and failed to notify a supervisor of the details of their search efforts.
Charges against two Toronto police officers accused of misconduct related to the 2017 murder of Tess Richey have been withdrawn, the police service announced.
Constables Alan McCullough and Michael Jones briefly appeared before a police tribunal on Monday, where their actions from November 2017 were to be reviewed. They were initially charged in June 2018 under the Police Services Act with two counts each of misconduct and neglect of duty.
Monday’s hearing concluded that there was no professional misconduct, leading to the withdrawal of the charges due to alternative measures, including disciplinary actions at the unit level.
As part of the resolution, the officers have agreed to take responsibility, contribute to police training on missing persons cases, and address recruits about the lessons learned from the incident. Additionally, they will forfeit 40 hours of pay.
On November 26, 2017, McCullough and Jones responded to a call at 3:45 p.m. near Church and Wellesley streets concerning Richey, who was reported missing.
Documents released in 2018 revealed that the officers did not search the adjacent property where Richey was last seen, did not canvass neighbors, and failed to inform a supervisor about their search efforts.
Richey’s body was discovered by her mother on November 29 in a stairwell outside an abandoned building.
Initially, police deemed her death accidental, but an autopsy later confirmed she had been strangled.
Richey’s death led to a professional standards review of police procedures for handling missing persons cases.
A Toronto police spokesperson told Global News in an email that the tribunal’s decision “reflects a commitment to both accountability and continuous improvement at the Service.”
“This matter has been resolved through a restorative approach to discipline, administered at the unit level. The Service consulted with Tess Richey’s family throughout the process. Our deepest sympathies remain with Tess Richey and her family, who endured an unimaginable loss,” the spokesperson said.
Kalen Schlatter, who investigators said met Richey in the early hours of November 25, 2017, was arrested on February 4, 2018, and charged with first-degree murder. He was later convicted and sentenced to life in prison.
Ontario Superior Court Justice Michael Dambrot referenced evidence of Schlatter’s sexual interest in choking, which was withheld from the jury, during his sentencing in 2020.
“It is true that you are young, but your sexual appetite led you literally to take an innocent young woman by the hand down a path to her death,” he said.
“To satisfy your lust, you took her life… you stole a large piece of the fabric of the very being of the members of her family and friends and, I could not fail to observe, you shed no tear for their losses.”
