A BC Mountie who was fired after showing a domestic violence victim his private parts in a picture is back on the job..The victim described the photo as a barely clothed "d*** pic." .The officer was reinstated after he argued the RCMP's conduct board treated him "unfairly.".Const. Andrew Hedderson was dismissed in December 2018 after the board found his behaviour constituted sexual misconduct and keeping him employed with the RCMP would "clearly imperil the public's confidence and trust" in the national police force..But Hedderson appealed the decision, arguing in part he should have been allowed an in-person hearing where the woman who reported him could be cross-examined. Adjudicator Steven Dunn agreed, ordering that the constable be reinstated and given back pay.."I find the board breached the principles of procedural fairness," Dunn wrote in his September 2021 appeal decision, which was recently published online..The officer's appeal states the victim experienced domestic violence by her boyfriend. The local RCMP attended and arrested him. The following day, her boyfriend was released on conditions, one of which was to not communicate with her..The day following his release, the victim's boyfriend texted her. She contacted the local RCMP detachment and reported the breach and unwanted communication. Hedderson was dispatched to the call..Upon arrival, the victim showed the Mountie pictures of her injuries, wherein her naked breasts were unknowingly exposed. Upon realizing this, the victim expressed her shame and embarrassment to the Mountie, which did not dissuade him from showing her a “revealing” picture of himself from his cell phone..The following days, both the victim and the Mountie engaged in communication through text messaging, the nature of which was sexual..After two days, Hedderson advised the victim communication between them should cease at it may jeopardize his career and the breach of conditions charge against her boyfriend. The victim was not happy with this decision and texted the Hedderson repeatedly expressing her frustration..She texted him advising him that her boyfriend had breached his conditions, that she feared his return, and requested the Mountie to attend her residence..Off-duty at the time, Hedderson told her to leave her residence, seek refuge in a safe location, and contact the police. The victim persisted in seeking Hedderson's assistance. Unbeknownst to her, the Mountie had blocked her number shortly after the last message..When the victim attended her ex-boyfriend’s court hearing she advised Crown counsel the Mountie showed her sexually explicit pictures of himself and corresponded with her via texts of a sexual nature. Crown counsel advised the Hedderson's line officer, and the situation led to the breach of release conditions charge against victim's ex-boyfriend being withdrawn..Hedderson denied showing the woman nude images, but told investigators he presented her one picture of himself in "very tight boxers" that showed "a whole lot of everything."."If it wasn't for the fabric, it's essentially a d*** pic," he said, according to the documents..He also admitted to texting the victim sexual messages following that incident..The conduct board heard there were 323 texts exchanged between Hedderson and the victim over a period of 11 days..According to the documents, Hedderson "initiated inappropriate sexual comments” that included asking her whether she liked the image he showed her, commenting on his own “pretty large package,” and telling her he could come back to her home for a “very thorough and deep check.”.He was reinstated in fall 2021, then placed on paid suspension pending the outcome of his new hearing," BC RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Alex Bérubé told CTV News in an email..The spokesperson could not confirm whether Hedderson received back pay following his appeal, citing "privacy restrictions."
