An Osoyoos RCMP officer has been docked 10 days pay and 10 days of leave after being caught naked and touching himself in his home’s front window.
Const. Ryan Fulcher, who at one point served on the Osoyoos Federal Serious and Organized Crime unit, received the penalty after admitting to the allegations earlier this year, according to RCMP code of conduct documents.
Late on the night of Sept. 29, 2018, Fulcher was naked in the living room of his home. The lights were on and the curtains were open when two teenage girls aged 16 and 17 walked by the home on the other side of the street.
One of the teens said it looked like the man was fondling himself. The other teen testified the man was “kind of touching” himself, “but like not really [he] just kinda, I don’t know, just standing there.”
The girls went home and told their mother, who called the police and took the teens on a drive asking them to direct them to the home where they saw the naked man.
When the mother arrived at the home, she observed the naked man in the living room window with his hand on his penis. After the mother called the police again, officers visited the home.
When police arrived they spoke to Fulcher, who identified himself as a fellow RCMP officer.
The RCMP launched an internal investigation into the incident about a week later.
Fulcher would also be criminally charged for the “indecent act,” but those charges were dropped by the Crown in May 2020.
Four days before Fulcher was set to appear at a January 2021 Code of Conduct hearing, a deal was reached between him and the RCMP’s discipline wing. The officer would admit to the allegations and be docked 10 days pay and 10 days of leave.
While he admitted to the allegations, Fulcher denied that he was fondling himself in the window, “but admits that it was possible that his hand briefly touched his penis.”
In the conduct board decision, Insp. Colin Miller ruled that “no matter how briefly it may have been” that he touched his penis, Const. Fulcher’s actions clearly discredited the force.
“It is not surprising that Const. Fulcher’s conduct caused concern among the witnesses. By being naked in front of a large window, in a room that was lit up while it was dark outside, it is quite foreseeable that he would be observed and that his motive for such behaviour would be questioned. This is especially significant given his proximity to the street and that an elementary school was only a short distance down the road,” Insp. Miller ruled.
“As a member of the RCMP, Const. Fulcher ought to have known the potential impact of engaging in this type of behaviour and cannot be protected from accountability due to his being inside his residence.”
Const. Fulcher previously had a clean disciplinary record, expressed remorse, had strong references from superiors and is working with a psychologist to ensure a similar incident is never repeated.
Insp. Miller accepted the deal reached between Fulcher and the RCMP’s discipline wing, giving the Mountie “an opportunity to continue his career” while warning that future code of conduct contraventions could lead to dismissal.
“I trust that, in the future, he will be more cognizant of his surroundings and conduct himself in a manner that is in accordance with the expectations that the public holds in regard to members of the RCMP.”
