Coquitlam RCMP block local activist on Twitter after information request

Coquitlam RCMP has blocked a local activist and aspiring politician on Twitter, a move that she says shows a concerning lack of transparency from a government institution.

Nicola Spurling, a social justice ambassador and former BC Green Party candidate, found out Wednesday afternoon that her local police service had blocked her on Twitter.

“It seems like a way of blocking the public from being able to access what should be public information,” she told Daily Hive. “It concerns me because as a taxpaying citizen, I’m paying for their services. And yet for some reason they’re giving me less services than they would an average person.”

Do I get a discount on my taxes, since I’m getting less services from them than the average citizen?

Maybe the @rcmpgrcpolice have forgotten who they serve. https://t.co/t5f5KeFODg

— Nicola Spurling 🌎🌳🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ (@NicESpurling) April 14, 2022

Spurling is an advocate for LGBTQ+ issues and was a long-time participant in CBC Radio’s BC political panel on its morning radio show. She was also once threatened with a lawsuit by JK Rowling over a tweet calling out the Harry Potter author’s anti-trans views.

She can still view Coquitlam RCMP’s tweets by logging out of her account and going on Twitter since Coquitlam RCMP have a public account. But the gesture still troubled her, and she wondered if it had to do with an access to information request she’d filed.

Canada’s Access to Information Act gives citizens the right to access public records for government bodies in the country.

Spurling filed one about a tweet Coquitlam RCMP sent out on February 11 where the force praised an officer who apparently paid for a woman’s groceries at a store.

When I saw a post @cqrcmp made, patting themselves on the back, for an officer who allegedly helped pay for a woman’s groceries, something seemed fishy. pic.twitter.com/j9AFN5i5uO

— Nicola Spurling 🌎🌳🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ (@NicESpurling) April 12, 2022

Police didn’t include any corroborating witness accounts of photos, and Spurling questioned whether it actually happened. Did the officer really report their good deed to the social media team? Or did Coquitlam RCMP fabricate the event to garner public support at a time when public perception of police is low?

She submitted a request asking for the name and position of the officer mentioned, the grocery store location when it took place, and whether the recipient knew their story would be shared by RCMP.

Coquitlam RCMP responded to her request this week, but did not fully answer her questions or include information that could verify the story, she said. The force also misgendered her in their response letter.

Without any evidence in the RCMP’s post, both scenarios were equally possible, and my curiosity peaked. I put in an ATI request for the information. pic.twitter.com/oZDQm59yLS

— Nicola Spurling 🌎🌳🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ (@NicESpurling) April 12, 2022

Daily Hive asked Coquitlam RCMP why they blocked Spurling on Twitter, and Const. Deanna Law said it was because Spurling violated the terms of interacting with them on social media. The policy was available online Thursday morning but had been taken down by Thursday afternoon.

Another Coquitlam RCMP media officer, Cpl. Paige Kuz, told Daily Hive the grocery help story was taken from a post on a private community Facebook page.

“To protect the privacy of the officer and the recipient, personal details were purposely left out,” Kuz said. “We then received an ATIP [Access to Information and Privacy] request regarding the post. Coquitlam RCMP responded to the ATIP request providing as many details as we could, while still preserving the privacy of the individuals involved.”

Spurling allegedly violated the force’s Twitter terms when she shared a screenshot of the response to her request. It contained the personal information of a civilian employee.

Spurling has submitted complaints about the Twitter block and lack of response to her Freedom of Information request. She’s also submitted another Freedom of Information request for why she was blocked and who did it.

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Spurling’s lack of trust in RCMP stemmed from response to harassment, doxxing on campaign trail

While Spurling was campaigning for the Green Party in 2017, she became the target of anti-trans harassment. One individual, in particular, participated in a counter-protest to oppose taking down an anti-trans billboard referencing JK Rowling. She said he also shared her home address online and showed up at her apartment.

“He shared my personal information with 10,000 or 20,000 people that follow him who hate trans people,” she said. “At the time, I was fearing for my safety.”

For a time she began sleeping during the day and staying awake at night so she wouldn’t be caught off guard.

When she went to police for help, officers initially said the individual’s behaviour could be considered criminal harassment. But later, they came back and said they didn’t believe the individual would harm Spurling, and apparently told her this came with the territory of running for public office.

“So basically, if I’m going to be involved in politics I’m going to have to deal with people stalking, harassing, or doxxing me all the time,” she said. “I was very upset with the way the RCMP treated that situation.”