Halton Regional Police Service, which polices Burlington, logged 52 public conduct complaints against its officers from January 1 through September 30, 2026. That is already more than the 49 recorded in all of 2025, according to a semi-annual report from Chief Stephen J. Tanner to the police board, the civilian body that oversees the service.
At the report's cutoff, none of this year's complaints had been substantiated, compared with four in 2025, and 22 were still outstanding or under review. The figures cover the whole region, with no Burlington breakdown. Halton police had 888 sworn officers at the end of September.
Across every category the public can file, there were 137 Halton-related complaints through September, against 170 in all of 2025. Most of this year's, 83, were not accepted and led to no action. They are turned away when they are made too late, are frivolous or in bad faith, are handled under another law, are not in the public interest, or don't directly affect the person filing.
The chief opened 11 internal cases of his own against officers in 2026. All four of those completed were substantiated, and two led to charges under the Community Safety and Policing Act, Ontario's police law, or other charges. The Special Investigations Unit, the provincial watchdog that investigates serious incidents involving police, opened five Halton cases, compared with 15 in 2025.
| Measure | 2025 (full year) | 2026 (Jan. 1 to Sept. 30) |
|---|---|---|
| Public conduct complaints | 49 | 52 |
| Public conduct complaints substantiated | 4 | 0 |
| Chief's internal complaints | 18 | 11 |
| SIU investigations opened | 15 | 5 |
Anyone with a complaint about an officer's conduct must file it with the Law Enforcement Complaints Agency, Ontario's independent police complaints body, not with the police service itself.
