'It’s an insult': Retired Mountie angered after N.S. mass shooting inquiry recommends former officers surrender their Red Serge

After spending 25 years as a frontline Mountie, Brian Carter says he and other veteran officers are angered by a recommendation calling on former officers to give up their ceremonial dress uniforms.

In its final report released in Truro on March 30, the Mass Casualty Commission recommends “the RCMP and other police services ensure that when police officers retire or otherwise cease their roles…they return all items of police uniform and kit, including ceremonial uniform and badges.”

“The RCMP and the RCMP Veterans’ Association should work together to ask retired members to return items in their personal possession, including badges that have not been encased in plastic and uniforms,” it adds.

Take one visit to Carter’s residence, and it’s clear the iconic Red Serge, instantly recognizable in artworks throughout the home, is part of Carter’s identity.

The scarlet tunic is part of every RCMP officer’s ceremonial kit, a uniform which also includes breeches, a Stetson hat, a Sam Browne belt, and brown high leather boots.

“It's an insult to our service to take that away, it’s a total insult,” says Carter. “It’s an insult to our service, our dedication, our commitment, and it’s earned, it’s not something that’s just given to you.”

He says if police agencies and governments force retired members to give back that symbol of their service, veterans will be deeply affected.

“It is a mental health issue for us. We struggle as it is with the negativity towards police and the things we've seen and done,” he says.

After retirement, Mounties traditionally keep the ceremonial uniform, which is worn only for certain ceremonies and under strict guidelines.

For example, says Carter, he wore his dress uniform to the regimental memorial for RCMP Cst. Heidi Stevenson, who was killed in the April 2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting, one of 22 people murdered by Gabriel Wortman.

Wortman was dressed like an RCMP officer and driving a replica RCMP cruiser during his violent rampage – wearing what resembled the RCMP’s duty uniform, which did not include the distinctive red tunic.

Carter insists surrendering ceremonial police uniforms won't make people safer.

“Is it a risk to the public, is it a risk? No. And it's not a risk to the public because it's not a working uniform,” he says.

The Commission also recommended badges should returned to members after they are encased in a block of hard plastic, and that the practice of issuing veteran or retired members’ badges should “cease immediately.”

Carter says the RCMP already encases an officer’s badge in hard polymer after service, and says retirement badges are clearly marked as such, allowing retired members to assist in emergencies such as motor vehicle crashes.

“Let’s face it, I can go to the dollar store and pick up a badge,” he says, “and then I can go out and pretend I’m a plainclothes cop and pull people over.”

“Coming after my retirement badge, or a Vancouver police retirement badge, what’s that doing?” Carter asks.

Many family members of those killed in the tragedy have lobbied for tighter restrictions around the possession of police items such as uniforms and badges, leading to the establishment of Nova Scotia’s Police Identity Management Act.

The Act limits who can possess police gear, banning most citizens from owning such items, although it does allow for the personal possession of ceremonial police uniforms.

The Commission recommended that exception be removed.

The brother of Sean McLeod, one of the victims, agrees.

“It's odd to see officers in a dress uniform, but that doesn't mean you can't [ever] see them and it doesn’t mean they’re not in the same status than they are at any other time,” says Scott McLeod.

“It would be different if the ceremonial uniforms were never associated with active duty at all,” he adds.

As a corrections officer, he says he understands the importance of earning the uniform, but believes the Commission’s suggestion of acknowledging veterans with a special blazer is a good compromise.

“Just so they’re not forgotten for the time they put in,” he says. “They still get to wear all their medals and their ribbons. It identifies them, but at the same time, you know they're not [in] active service.”

But Carter says other veterans agree – the Red Serge is different. Like many others, Carter wore his ceremonial uniform when he got married, and hopes to leave it to his family when he passes.

“It's not just a piece of cloth, it's much more than that,” he says. “It is very difficult for retired and serving police officers to lose that.”