Job Specification

Purpose of Position :

To conduct investigations of individuals, companies or municipal corporations alleged to have contravened environmental legislation and regulations. To act as Provincial Officer in preparing and assisting in prosecutions.

Duties / Responsibilities :

1. Planning, leading and conducting environmental investigations; obtaining evidence; sampling and ensuring security of samples; obtaining search warrants or court orders; locating, interviewing and obtaining statements from suspects or witnesses, complainants, industry and municipal representatives; obtaining and evaluating information on alleged offenders; liaising with external agencies on joint investigations.
2. Examining and analyzing all evidence; assessing and interpreting findings; organizing data consolidation; preparing reports and Crown Briefs detailing findings, including rough sketches, technical information and photographs; and providing recommendations and analysis for further action.
3. Prosecuting Provincial Offences Act Part I and selected Part III offences under environmental legislation and regulations; conducting examinations in chief; cross-examining witnesses; preparing and presenting trial summations and related case law.
4. Preparing evidence to obtain court injunctions; liaising with staff of district and regional offices to inform of status and future directions as necessary; and ensuring collection, security, preparation and ordering of evidence for court proceedings and coordination of witnesses during trial.
5. Preparing and assisting with prosecutions as Provincial Officer: preparing and swearing informations; executing and serving summonses, subpoenas, court orders and injunction orders; and briefing crown counsel; attending Provincial Court as an agent of the crown to set dates for trial; making submissions and speak to sentencing on guilty pleas by stating the facts and the impact of the offence and appearing as a material witness at trials.
6. Maintaining an electronic record of investigation activities in an enforcement tracking system. Completing and maintaining current entries related to duties in notebooks and casebooks which are subject to the scrutiny of court proceedings.
7. Other duties participating in projects, assignments or committees as assigned by the Supervisor or Manager.

Staffing and Licencing :

Job requires valid Class G Ontario drivers' licence.

Knowledge :

Job requires knowledge of investigative techniques; due process of law including defences such as due diligence, induced error and abuse of process; judicial process; rules of evidence and court procedures; and related legislative/regulatory requirements (Provincial Offenses Act, Ontario and Canada Evidence Act, aspects of Criminal Code of Canada), in order to: carry out investigations and bring appropriate charges before the court of jurisdiction; gather evidence through use of search warrants; interview suspects, complainants, industry representatives and caution persons who may be charged prior to taking statements; obtain and collect information on alleged offenders; and prepare and assist with prosecutions as Provincial Officer (executing legal actions, appearing as witness) and to bring admissible evidence before court, to obtain convictions. Job requires knowledge of the Crown brief format to prepare and present evidence and recommend charges in the prescribed from to be accepted by the Prosecutor and court. Job requires knowledge of court procedures to prosecute Provincial Offences Act Part I and selected Part III offences, in order to conduct examinations in chief and cross-examinations of defendants/witnesses, and presenting evidence in court proceedings (e.g. examining and cross examining witness and experts; tendering exhibits; preparing and presenting trial summations and related case law in support of conviction and sentencing; tendering appropriate sentence to the court on behalf of the crown). This knowledge is required to achieve successful prosecutions of these offences.
Job requires knowledge of environmental legislation/regulations (e.g. Environmental Protection Act, Ontario Water Resources Act, Pesticides Act, Environmental Assessment Act, Canadian Environmental Protection Act, Fisheries Act, procedures in Environmental Bill of Rights), related regulations and Ministry compliance guidelines in order to interpret evidence in relation to legislation/regulations or legal precedents, to develop an appropriate course of action which can range from a Director's Order to a jail term of up to 5 years and / or a $10 million fine.
Job requires knowledge of the application of theory and practices related to environmental management, pollution and pollution control technologies, other related regulations (eg - Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act) and industrial processes and operations to: gather, examine and interpret evidence; select evidence for prosecutions; and present the technical and expert evidence in a manner that can be understood in a court of law. Job requires knowledge of database searching and management to consolidate and manage information gathered during investigations and prepare technical analyses and reports for case management or court exhibits. Job requires the knowledge of data input, searching methods, and analysis of information in an enforcement tracking system.

Skills :

Job requires analytical and problem solving skills to investigate individuals/companies alleged to have contravened environmental legislation/regulations, and provide evidence, analysis and recommendations for further action. Job requires analyzing nature of alleged contravention and developing initial plan for investigation and amending the plan as the investigation progresses and new information becomes known. Job requires reasoning to prioritize workload and gathering of information/evidence using a variety of investigative techniques such as interviews, statements, surveillance, document searches, sampling and search warrants. The order in which the investigation proceeds, effects the quality of the evidence obtained. (e.g. background information on an individual is desired before a cautioned statement is obtained, to assist in assessing the accuracy / truthfulness of the statement). Job develops investigation strategies and reasoning suitable to specifics and nature of case, adapting/modifying the order of the investigation to allow for complications resulting from efforts made to hide violations.
Job requires reasoning to analyze and interpret evidence in relation to environmental legislation/regulations with respect to pollution of the natural environment and environmental management and determine whether infraction occurred, and evaluate whether evidence is sufficient to warrant legal action; is sufficiently complete/adequate to achieve successful prosecution and the type of action recommended (e.g. charge to be laid or forward to another branch for follow up on compliance).
Job requires reasoning, analytical and evaluative skills to assemble evidence and consolidate/translate into a coherent Crown Brief with the facts in issue identified and separated from the other evidence and also to assemble and disclose package in accordance with the rules of disclosure.
Job requires problem solving and analytical skills to gather/develop evidence that can be used in reply to defence strategies raised during a trial, testify and undergo cross-examination in court.
Job requires oral communication skills to: interview witnesses, suspects, industry representatives and obtain/discuss evidence; present and be able to explain interpretations of technical/scientific evidence in court as a material witness; and discuss and examine information on the technical/scientific nature, cause and source of pollution with technical/scientific staff of companies or organizations being investigated, staff of alleged offenders, legal counsel and police investigators.
Job requires interpersonal skills to: interview suspects, witnesses, complainants and industry representatives who may be unwilling or evasive; undergoing cross-examination at hearings and in court; and interpret evidence for courts, presenting and illustrating how evidence relates to alleged contraventions and supports prosecution.

Freedom of Action :

Job requires working within environmental legislation and related regulations, delegated Provincial Officer functions and rules, legal precedents, policies, standards and program objectives; and within theories, principles and recognized techniques of the environmental sciences and environmental management; and within investigative and legal processes and requirements such as rules of evidence. Job exercises latitude in decision-making by: planning and conducting investigations; deciding on the appropriate offence(s) and who to charge; identifying and resolving practical, technical and procedural problems without direction when conducting investigations in field and situations which require an immediate response; interviewing/dealing with industry representatives, lawyers, accused, witnesses and determining how to obtain legal evidence/information; interpreting technical findings in relation to environmental legislation, precedents and policies and determining whether and on what basis there is sufficient evidence to pursue legal action; preparing evidence and Crown Briefs and advising Crown Counsel; and giving evidence as a material witness.
Supervisor reviews work during and upon completion of investigation, when job makes recommendations on prosecution or other follow-up activities. Job refers to Supervisor issues/problems such as investigations involving use of confidential sources, or investigations requiring development of informant(s) or situations not covered by established methods or procedures or of a sensitive nature.