Canada: Pro-legalization cop censored by department

Tom Angell at LEAP sends us this breaking story:

Active duty police officer David Bratzer was planning to accept an invitation to speak about drug policy and harm reduction at an official city government-sponsored event...until his police department's leadership stepped in and ordered him not to show up.

Bratzer, a vocal "drug war" critic active with Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, has served the Victoria Police Department in British Columbia, Canada for four years, and he has spoken up publicly about drug policy on many occasions, including in front of a Canadian Senate committee. He is always clear in saying that his views do not represent the department's, and he only practices his activism while he is off-duty.

Even though Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms strongly protects citizens' rights to free speech and political advocacy (just as the First Amendment gives all Americans the right to criticize government policies they disagree with), Bratzer's supervisors at the police department ordered him not to speak out at the city forum.

There is a petition at the following link to voice your opinion in this matter.