Grandfather of deceased infant testifies that Helen Grus was a 'dedicated' cop and 'always willing to help'

The grandfather of an infant who died in 2020 praised Const. Helen Grus' professional conduct during his testimony as a witness for the defence during the eleventh day of Grus' disciplinary tribunal on Monday in Ottawa, ON.

Grus, an officer with the Ottawa Police Service (OPS), is alleged by the OPS to have committed discreditable conduct – which could lead to her demotion or termination – for having inquired about possible links between an increase in infant deaths brought to the OPS' attention and the "vaccination status" of the deceased infants' mothers.

The OPS has accused Grus of carrying out an "unauthorized project" with this inquiry, which allegedly involved contacting family members of the babies who had died to determine if their mothers had taken mRNA injections marketed as "COVID-19 vaccines."

The grandfather's late grandchild's identity is subject to a publication ban to protect the family's privacy.

"[Grus] has always been … one of the most caring, dedicated police officers I know off," the grandfather said, who worked with police officers for decades in his job as a loss prevention professional.

He said Grus "was always willing to help, always willing to hear your story," and added that she "always wants to help victims."

"Police departments all over the country need more police officers like her," he states. He noted that his grandchild passed away prior to the release of the "COVID-19 vaccines."

Chris Renwick, the hearing officer and de facto judge overseeing the tribunal's proceedings, denied the defence's request to invite scientific and medical expert witnesses.

He also denied the defence's request to subpoena text messages exchanged between two of Grus' OPS colleagues who testified during the hearing as witnesses for the prosecution.

Previously, Renwick denied the defence's request to have Grus' duty book – in which she logged work notes as a detective – disclosed to them.

Bath-Sheba van den Berg, one of Grus' lawyers, lists examples of behaviours previously deemed to amount to discreditable conduct in OPS disciplinary tribunals: assaulting an ex-wife, threatening to shoot, submitting fraudulent insurance claims, insulting a member of the public, abandoning a crime scene, and shoplifting.

Blair Ector, Grus' other lawyer, said the prosecution must prove all three of its claims given the phrasing of its documentation: that Grus conducted unauthorized Records Management System (RMS) searches, failed to make notes of her RMS queries, and interfered with an investigation of an infant death investigation by inappropriately contacting the family.

Ector said the "conjunctive" phrasing of the OPS' accusation of discreditable conduct against Grus means Renwick must discharge the entire charge against Grus if the prosecution fails to demonstrate any of the three aspects of its allegation.

The tribunal will continue through Thursday, with future dates to be determined if it does not conclude by then.