N.W.T. integrity commissioner dismisses harassment complaint against MLA Katrina Nokleby

WhileN.W.T. Great Slave MLA Katrina Nokleby'made an error of judgment' in some of her communications targetingShane Thompson, a fellow MLA and minister, the territory'sintegrity commissioner has dismissed acomplaint lodged against the Great Slave representativethis week.

"In my judgment not all of Ms. Nokleby's communications cross the line from acceptable political rhetoric so as to constitute harassment," wroteIntegrity Commissioner David Phillip Jonesin a 13-page decision, publishedFriday.

"I am satisfied that Ms. Nokleby made an error of judgment in the content and tone of some of her communications, but did so in good faith."

Thompson, the MLA for Nahendeh and the minister for Municipal and Community Affairs as well as Environment and Climate Change, submitted the complaint against Nokleby in June. He claimed Nokleby "engaged in a pattern of harassing behaviour" meant to belittle and embarrass him. He pointed to emails and social media posts as evidence, which were not included in the integrity commissioner's decision.

The posts and emailsfocused ontopics such as the government'suse of sole-source contracts,utselk'e caribou harvesting, and the Fort Smith active shooter incident.

In her submission to the integrity commissioner,Nokleby argued those issues were legitimate political critique of the "ongoing failure of Cabinet (including Minister Thompson) to address fundamental issues of transparency and accountability in the N.W.T."

Nokleby claimsshe's 'direct and to-the-point'

In her response, Nokleby acknowledgedher "direct and to-the-point manner" of communicating might not be well-received by her political colleaguesbut saidthe social media posts constituted legitimate political speech.

In his decision, the integrity commissioner wrote that he "fully understand[s] why Mr. Thompson is irked by the content and tone of Ms. Nokleby's criticisms,"and agreed with Nokleby's own assertion that she could be more thoughtful about the tone of her communications.

But Jones ultimately ruled Nokleby's posts did not constitute harassment or a serious violation of the members' code of conduct. He also said that because the current government is about to be dissolved pending an election, it would not be worthwhile to refer Nokleby and Thompson to mediation.

However, Jones did recommend that if Nokleby and Thompson serve together in the next legislative assembly, they should consider voluntary mediation to improve their communication.

The integrity commissioner also suggested that all members of the next legislative assemblyshould get a training workshop on appropriate social media use.