BC RCMP officer fined $2,000 for hiring foreign nanny

A BC RCMP officer has been fined $2,000 after pleading guilty in BC Supreme Court to illegally hiring a foreign national as a live-in nanny.

Randi Ellen White pleaded guilty to illegally employing the US-born woman without a work permit in violation of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act during a multi-count indictment trial.

Judge Paul Riley said the plea was entered after nine days of trial while the main witness, Ms C, an American citizen, was on the stand.

The judge said White had made some efforts to comply with the settlement scheme and her offending behavior resulted from a serious error of judgment in proceeding with the nanny arrangement before obtaining the necessary approval.

“The crime was motivated by a combination of selfless altruism and selfish pragmatism,” he said.

“By pleading guilty, Ms. White admitted that she illegally employed Ms. C as a live-in nanny, knowing that Ms. C was a foreign national who was not authorized to work in Canada, or at least failing to do so. to exercise due diligence regarding Ms. C’s employment status in Canada,” Riley said in his May 2 decision.

He said the period of the offense was between February 20, 2019 and April 30, 2020.

The Crown alleged that White’s intent was “to ‘run an immigration scam'” by recruiting and hiring Ms. C, who he knew was a vulnerable foreign national without authority to work in Canada.

The judge disagreed with this contention.

The Crown alleged that White misrepresented working conditions and living arrangements, mistreated Ms C and exploited her vulnerabilities, among other things, by asking her to work full-time for $1,000 a month in wages.

The Crown said Ms C placed her trust in the police officer, a trust the Crown alleged White abused by exploiting and mistreating the nanny.

The Crown sought the maximum fine of $50,000, while the defense argued for a fine ranging from $1,000 to $2,500.

Riley said the offense was aggravated by the breach of trust associated with White’s status as a sworn police officer and the negative immigration consequences and emotional and financial impact on the victim.

Ms. C was born and raised in the United States and was legally deaf from birth, although with limited hearing. She testified at trial with the help of two American Sign Language interpreters and can read lips.

A subject of domestic violence, she left her husband while living in Seattle.

On or about September 7, 2018, Ms. C posted an ad on Craigslist in Bellingham, Washington with a description line that read “Seeking family in search of a live-in bone.”

Riley said White made a real effort to comply with immigration rules by commissioning, paying and submitting an application for a labor market impact assessment.

“Miss. White’s mistake was to act hastily by allowing Mrs. C to take up residence with the whites and for Mrs. C to care for the white children before the regulatory approval process was completed,” Riley said.

The judge placed White on a two-year, $2,000 peace bond, which requires her to have no direct or indirect contact with Ms. C.