THUNDER BAY – Thunder Bay’s city council has sanctioned Coun. Aldo Ruberto for comments he made online about an incident in which a man ran over a tent at a homeless encampment.
The issue divided council on a 6-4 vote, however, with several councillors expressing skepticism over a report from the city’s integrity commissioner that found Ruberto had breached the city’s code of conduct.
That close vote will result in a five-day suspension of pay for Ruberto, amounting to about $593, according to the city. Council also unanimously accepted a recommendation to explore developing specific social media guidelines for councillors.
Ruberto's comment on Facebook expressing hope there could be an innocent explanation for the incident violated the widely-recognized principle elected officials shouldn't comment on ongoing criminal investigations or matters before the courts, the integrity commissioner's report found.
It concluded he had violated code provisions that councillors must be "held to a higher standard of behaviour" that "promotes public confidence [and] avoids the improper use of influence of their office," among others.
It also raised serious concerns over the at-large councillor’s social media use generally, including his propensity to block members of the public and, in this case, a journalist who pressed him on his comments.
Blocking by elected officials is acceptable to combat harassment and inappropriate comments, the report found, but should not be "arbitrary" or used to silence opposing views.
The investigation was launched after a complaint from an unnamed resident. The integrity commissioner noted that person had themselves targeted Ruberto with unacceptable online abuse that would have warranted being blocked.
Ruberto rejected the report's conclusions in no uncertain terms Monday, saying he’d done nothing wrong, and dismissing the report as simply the commissioner’s “interpretation" of events.
On Oct. 6, 2021, the day after a man drove his truck over a tent at an abandoned gas bar at County Fair mall, which had become a gathering place for people experiencing homelessness, Ruberto posted the following on Facebook:
“I hope it is a case of the wind blowing a tent and hitting the truck. And not a truck purposely running over a stationary tent. The safety of people is the ultimate goal.”
The man was charged later that day with dangerous driving.
The use of the gas bar for shelter had sparked tensions, with the city days earlier backing down on a plan to fence it off with police support.
Several councillors expressed greater concern over the integrity commissioner's report than Ruberto's comments, over the course of a more than two-hour debate Monday.
Some – Mayor Bill Mauro, and Couns. Aiello, Fraser, and You – voted against even granting the integrity commissioner time to make remarks introducing the report. The same four councillors later cast votes against sanctioning Ruberto.
Mauro called the "sub judice" principle that elected officials shouldn't comment on matters before the courts "incredibly important."
However, he said the idea Ruberto's comments could be seen to influence an investigation was "a stretch." The publicity surrounding the report had been punishment enough, he added.
“I spoke to a lot of people, and they just don’t get it,” agreed Coun. Aiello. “They’re like, he didn’t say anything bad… I didn’t see any malice there, I didn’t see anything there.”
“It’s not a question of malice or intention to impede [an investigation],” said Janice Atwood of Principles Integrity, the firm that provides integrity commissioner services to the city. “It’s the failure to recognize that obligation of an elected official not to engage in speculative discussion with respect to a live, active police investigation.”
Ruberto called the report an example of "cancel culture," saying the regulation of councillors' online speech could put a chill on their freedom of expression.
“This happened to me – it could happen to you,” he said. “We are all on trial tonight.”
That warning resonated with some.
“Now I’m really, really scared – what should I do?" asked Coun. Peng You. "I should do nothing to avoid a mistake? We’re all human beings.”
Coun. Brian Hamilton said some councillors seemed to be missing the seriousness of Ruberto’s actions, while echoing comments it was “awkward” to discuss the conduct of a colleague.
“The reason this is important to me is, this is about public trust,” he said. “Public trust is serious business – it’s the cornerstone of our democracy.”
The McKellar ward councillor said he was disappointed Ruberto had failed to acknowledge any wrongdoing, saying when he himself was found to violate the code of conduct in 2019, he had apologized and used it as a "learning moment."
Ruberto’s refusal to apologize or indicate he would change his behaviour, and “trying to tell the [integrity commissioner] how to do their job,” was problematic, he said.
Principles Integrity made a similar contention.
“One of the things that has been challenging is [Ruberto’s] resistance to even acknowledging there is an issue,” said Atwood.
The firm's report noted several previous complaints about his conduct on social media had been resolved informally, but said that had clearly failed to address the concerns.
Coun. Shelby Ch'ng said while she was sympathetic to the difficulties of social media use for elected officials, Ruberto's comments risked undermining public faith in democratic leaders.
“I want people to take us seriously when we do speak,” she said.
