Edmonton city councillor Mike Nickel again found in violation of code of conduct, facing sanction hearings for recommended censure

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Edmonton city councillor and mayoral candidate Mike Nickel has again been found in violation of the council code of conduct and will face sanction hearings on two separate matters.

Integrity commissioner Jamie Pytel released investigation reports Thursday afternoon finding Nickel violated a slew of council rules stemming from six complaints, including one from Mayor Don Iveson. As punishment, Pytel is recommending that council pass a motion to censure Nickel as well as issue a letter of reprimand.

This isn’t the first time the Ward 11 councillor has been found in violation of the council code, which Pytel said was also taken into account when proposing the new sanctions. Last August, it was determined he breached the rules 10 times through his actions on social media. But Nickel avoided being sanctioned by his council colleagues with four councillors voting against issuing a punishment. Unlike most council votes, sanction decisions require a two-thirds majority.

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First, Pytel said Nickel intentionally attempted to retaliate against people who made the prior complaints against him through two April social media posts. Nickel posted a photo of Coun. Andrew Knack asking if he directed a member of his staff to lodge one of the complaints and if it was a “$50,000+ stunt.” Pytel said this was a clear infringement of the rules because Nickel was acting in retaliation to the previous complaints issued against him.

“He intentionally attempted to ridicule and intimidate people who have made code complaints, or intimidate people from making complaints in the future, all of which is retaliatory,” Pytel said in her decision. “The April 12 and 13, 2021 social media posts leave the false impression that Coun. Knack is somehow responsible for costing the taxpayers more than $50,000. Not only is this a false  statement about the 2020 complaints, but importantly, this is retaliatory conduct against people who bring forward code complaints by trying to hold them personally and publicly responsible for the costs associated with complaints.”

In a second investigation garnering four complaints, Pytel found Nickel used email addresses obtained through his duty as a councillor for election campaign purposes. The code of conduct prohibits councillors from using email distribution lists that are used for official duties for campaign activities. The four residents who issued the complaints said they never signed up to receive campaign notices but had reached out in the past with ward-specific concerns.

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“From the information provided by the complainants, they did not sign up to get campaign communications from Coun. Nickel, but they do want to be able to interact with their councillor regarding his official duties,” Pytel wrote. “The code prohibits council members from using electronic mail distribution lists that are used for official duties for campaign activities and communications.”

Nickel has again retained legal counsel from Jonathan Denis, former justice minister and Alberta attorney-general, for the upcoming sanction hearing. In a letter responding to the investigations, Denis said he disputes the code violations because Nickel’s “attacks” were directed at ideas and not people.

The sanction hearings are scheduled for June 24.

duscook@postmedia.com

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