The former public face of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary says she left the police force because of what she perceived as toxicity that enabled inappropriate conduct, undermined trust, and harmed employees.
Suzanne FitzGerald says concerns she raised to supervisors about misconduct were “frequently dismissed, minimized, or normalized.” One of the most serious of which, she says, was the conduct of Sgt. Robert Baldwin, who is now named in multiple lawsuits filed against the provincial government.
“People are afraid to bring things forward,” FitzGerald said in a recent interview.
“I brought forward some pretty significant issues that are now lawsuits against the organization and they were ignored.”
FitzGerald resigned from the RNC in May 2024 after a 17-year career that spanned multiple roles, including media relations, criminal investigation and handling domestic violence cases. She now works for the federal government.
She is one of 29 officers — many of whom were in the middle of their careers — who resigned between 2023 and the end of 2025. An additional seven resigned or have put in their notice since then.
FitzGerald reached a point where remaining with the RNC was “no longer compatible with my health, my family, or my values.”
She describes a workplace rife with misogyny, organizational failures in training, governance, and leadership, which deprioritized mental health support for members.
FitzGerald says she watched as many skilled officers walked out the door, taking their training and experience with them.
That chapter of her life is behind her, FitzGerald says, adding she was never asked to give an exit interview.
Her hope is that speaking publicly now will improve things for the “skilled, compassionate professionals who continue to show up every day under immense pressure and with insufficient support.”
Meanwhile, RNC Chief Patrick Roche is defending his own record, and says FitzGerald’s comments don’t reflect the current police force. Roche was appointed interim chief in mid-2021, with the appointment becoming permanent in early 2022.
“It is unfortunate and misleading when a former member speaks as though past issues and behaviours are the current experience when they have not worked in the environment for several years,” Roche said in an emailed response to questions from CBC News.
“Cultural changes take time, difficult conversations and leadership. Progress has, and will continue to be, made.”
Public perception trumps public safety, FitzGerald says
FitzGerald began her policing career in 2007 as a young single mother who graduated top of her class and was motivated to give back to the community.
Over the years, FitzGerald says she witnessed the RNC remove resources from police files based on public perception instead of public safety.
“Shifting of priority because it was just simply in the news, coming off of files that needed it,” FitzGerald said.
“That was really challenging to see that.”
FitzGerald says she was brought in at times to finish other people’s work, and wrote reports to senior management, at their request, when others “made some significant errors that have been incredibly impactful to public safety and ongoing investigations.”
FitzGerald speaks with reporters about a homicide case in 2010. (CBC)
She says those issues were never dealt with.
“I think that there’s this perception that if you bring something forward, that’s what’s going to happen anyway. And so most people don’t bring it forward,” FitzGerald said.
In his statement to CBC News, Roche notes that complaints of officer misconduct are handled by a specialized unit dedicated to accountability, with processes to ensure everyone is treated fairly.
“As an employer, we are required to maintain confidentiality related to employees’ personal information,” the chief said. “This would include disciplinary processes.”
Raised concerns over RNC officer driving downtown
FitzGerald says Robert Baldwin was a prime example of the police force failing to act when past allegations of sexual misconduct were brought to light.
In 2009, FitzGerald says she raised concerns — that she says were shared with other uniformed and civilian workers — up the chain of command about Baldwin, a senior officer whom she worked with.
Baldwin, who later retired with the rank of sergeant, routinely left his coverage area in the west district to drive downtown, FitzGerald alleges.
“If I am responding to a priority one domestic call in his area and I’m 30 minutes away because he is downtown, that is a public safety issue,” she said.
FitzGerald says she flagged the issue to supervisors. “Their responses were, to say disappointing, is an understatement. I got, ‘He’s a senior guy. What are you going to do?’”
Years later, at the request of colleagues, FitzGerald raised the issue again.
It was 2016.
“The response I got was, ‘He’s just looking at the skirts,’” FitzGerald said.
FitzGerald says she raised the issue on two other occasions during those same time periods.
Multiple women have filed lawsuits claiming they were sexually assaulted by now-retired Sgt. Robert Baldwin, while he was on duty. Baldwin is pictured in a 2010 file image. (CBC)
In 2022, lawyer Lynn Moore filed two civil lawsuits in which seven women, including an RNC officer, allege they were sexually assaulted or violated by members of the force. Three of the women, including the officer, alleged Baldwin was their assailant.
In 2024, Moore filed another pair of civil lawsuits on behalf of two other women. The lawsuits alleged the women were visibly intoxicated when Baldwin offered to drive them home in his marked police car in St. John’s.
The alleged assaults naming Baldwin took place between 2012 and 2017.
Moore wrote in court filings that it was a “well-known issue throughout the force” that Baldwin was frequently downtown and out of his coverage area.
“The RNC had a duty to investigate, supervise, discipline and otherwise control Baldwin,” an amended statement of claim said.
“The RNC failed to take any steps, or any adequate steps, to prevent the batteries perpetrated by Baldwin.”
While Baldwin is named as an alleged assailant in court filings, he is not the target of the lawsuits. The provincial government is listed as the sole defendant, as the body responsible for the RNC.
The allegations have not been tested in court. Through his lawyer, Baldwin has categorically denied all allegations against him.
Baldwin has never been criminally charged.
The province filed a statement of defence to the initial lawsuit in August 2023 denying any wrongdoing or liability.
In a statement, Roche said he can’t speak to any ongoing or anticipated civil proceedings.
“I stand by the many positive changes implemented during my tenure as chief,” Roche said.
“The RNC of today is not the RNC of 2020.”
Report made recommendations to RNC
FitzGerald says she was encouraged by the findings of a workplace review by Toronto lawyer Harriett Lewis which she says laid out a clear path forward for the police force.
Released in July 2022, Lewis’s report found the province was providing effective policing, but noted morale issues, poor communication, resentment, suspicion of favouritism, fear of discipline and a system of promotion that pits members of the force against each other.
Lewis’s report coincided with the sexual assault conviction of former RNC Const. Doug Snelgrove, who raped a woman after offering her a ride home in his patrol car in 2014.
Lewis made nine recommendations aimed at improving morale at the RNC.
“Given all of the circumstances, I do not believe that reporting incidents of an officer’s misconduct to a superior officer, even to a commissioned officer or the chief, is a satisfactory structure for the RNC,” Lewis wrote.
“The culture of policing discourages, (and I believe would condemn), one officer’s reporting the poor behaviour of another.”
Cultural changes take time, difficult conversations and leadership. Progress has, and will continue to be, made.- Chief Patrick Roche
At the time, Roche — who had returned from retirement to take on the top job a year earlier — promised to implement all of Lewis’s recommendations. That included a recommendation that the RNC establish a “trusted place” where employees can come forward with concerns about misconduct.
“It’s a concern of mine that officers feel that way; that they feel they cannot come forward without reprisal,” said Roche in July 2022.
In an email response to CBC’s inquiry about FitzGerald’s comments, Roche said the RNC hired a director of human resources in December 2023 and implemented a new respectful workplace policy in 2025, following Lewis’s recommendations.
“It outlines the complaint process, investigation timelines, and resolution options. Investigators are assigned by the Public Service Commission and are not employees of the RNC,” Roche said.
FitzGerald acknowledges there has been some positive change, but also believes there needs to be “structural, transformative change,” including an independent, civilian oversight board.
FitzGerald points to a report on police oversight in Newfoundland and Labrador by Indigenous advocacy group First Voice — the culmination of over a year of research into how the province could overhaul the policing system to quell misconduct and abuse.
First Voice called for independent, civilian-led police oversight to instill public trust in policing and add a layer of accountability for the chief of police.
“This addresses so many of the gaps that are there, not only external in terms of public trust, but from an internal perspective to establish some kind of a structure, accountability that’s transparent and that is fair,” FitzGerald said.
‘You will see more people leaving’
Justice and Public Safety Minister Helen Conway Ottenheimer has indicated she plans to bring forward legislation in the fall sitting of the House of Assembly to address police oversight.
Police boards are used in different jurisdictions across Canada to provide independent oversight of police and are responsible for hiring — and in rare cases, firing — a police chief.
FitzGerald says without that level of oversight, the police leadership is accountable to no one. The justice minister oversees the RNC but is meant to stay at arms-length to avoid political interference.
Patrick Roche is the chief of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary. (Darryl Murphy/CBC)
She says recent comments by Roche in response to CBC’s reporting on the recent exodus of police officers from his organization “didn’t emulate any kind of accountability” to her.
“If you don’t prioritize your officers’ wellness and you don’t acknowledge that there’s organizational cultural issues within the organization, I don’t believe that you are qualified to be a leader of that organization,” FitzGerald said.
For his part, Roche defends his tenure.
He says the number of women in leadership positions have doubled, including females taking the helm for the first time as deputy chief, staff sergeant, K9 officer, member of the tactics and rescue unit and marine unit.
“These achievements are meaningful steps forward. We continue to break down barriers and foster diversity as we work to build a more equitable and inclusive workplace,” Roche said.
FitzGerald says her experiences should not be seen as an indictment of all that work at the RNC, but a harbinger of what may come.
“There are countless dedicated, professional, competent officers that are going into that place every day, serving the public with integrity and doing exceptional work in relation to public safety, despite everything that is working against them,” she said.
“That contrast will rear its head. You will see more people leaving.”
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