Victoria's chief constable has filed a petition in B.C. Supreme Court seeking an order to stop an external investigation by the Police Complaint Commissioner into allegations he sent inappropriate Twitter messages to the wife of a subordinate officer.

In the petition filed Tuesday in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver, Frank Elsner is seeking an order to stop RCMP Chief Supt. Sean Bourrie from continuing his investigation into the Twitter allegations. Elsner is also trying to prevent the search of any of his electronic devices and telephone records.

Finally, Elsner is seeking an order requiring Police Complaint Commissioner Stan Lowe to remove the 12-page order outlining the allegations from his website.

Elsner claims Lowe has no authority to order an investigation into conduct that has already been the subject of an internal probe.

In August, Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps and Esquimalt Mayor Barb Desjardins, co-chairs of the police board, received information that Elsner had exchanged Twitter messages with the wife of a subordinate officer. They brought the information to the attention of the police complaint commissioner. The matter was treated as an internal discipline matter.

In December, Elsner stepped aside after Lowe ordered two investigations: one for social-media messages the chief allegedly sent to the wife of a subordinate officer, the second for allegations of workplace harassment.

Lowe said a previous investigation into Elsner's social-media messages, ordered by the Victoria and Esquimalt Police Board, was inadequate and failed the test of fairness, accountability and transparency under the Police Act.

Lowe asked RCMP Chief Supt. Sean Bourrie to lead the Twitter investigations with the help of officers from the Vancouver Police Department.

The second investigation was triggered by complaints from four female Victoria Police Department employees who alleged workplace harassment. The police union forwarded those complaints to Lowe's office on Dec. 11.

Lowe's 12-page order, published on the website, included the removal of Esquimalt Mayor Barb Desjardins and Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps, the police board's co-chairwomen and internal discipline authorities. The order spells out the allegations of misconduct by the chief and how the co-chairwomen mishandled the police board investigation.

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