An Ottawa police detective who investigated potential links between COVID-19 vaccines and infant deaths has launched an $875,000 lawsuit against CBC.
She alleged the broadcaster conducted a malicious campaign against her through false reporting.
Det. Helen Grus, currently facing disciplinary action, filed the lawsuit in Ontario Superior Court last fall.
The lawsuit comes from CBC articles published between March 2022 and December 2023, which she claims contained harmful and incorrect information from confidential sources within the Ottawa Police Service (OPS).
The controversy began when Grus, then a member of the Sex Assault and Child Abuse unit, investigated possible connections between experimental COVID-19 vaccines and infant deaths in the region.
This investigation led to disciplinary charges of discreditable conduct from the OPS Professional Standards Unit in July 2022.
According to court documents, Grus alleges CBC's reporting in March 2022 directly led to administrative charges against her.
A December 2023 story published just before a court appearance by her lawyer allegedly repeated false statements and invaded her privacy while her case was before the tribunal.
CBC spokesperson Chuck Thompson defended the broadcaster's coverage, stating the organization believes Grus's claims are "entirely without merit."
During tribunal hearings in August 2023, Police Sergeant Jason Arbuthnot's testimony revealed that OPS had informed deceased infants parents about the internal investigation before CBC's coverage.
According to Grus's lawsuit, this sequence of events contradicts the timeline presented in CBC's reporting.
Bath-Sheba van den Berg, Grus's defence lawyer, maintains her client acted within her duties as a police officer.
"Babies died suddenly, in circumstances identical to the adverse events reported by Pfizer's clinical data," van den Berg wrote in a statement, arguing that investigating medical history, including vaccination status, is standard procedure in infant death cases.
Now approaching its twenty-third day, the disciplinary hearing has reportedly generated substantial legal costs for Grus, who received no financial support from the Ottawa Police Association, even though the association typically pays officers legal costs.
The tribunal continues with closing submissions scheduled for Thursday morning at the Ottawa police collision reporting centre in Kanata.
