A Victoria police constable who is also a vocal supporter of drug legalization is pursuing a human rights complaint against the VicPD and Chief Jamie Graham.

Const. David Bratzer, the current coordinator of the department's bait car program, filed the complaint early this year, claiming his superiors infringed on his freedom of speech because of his political beliefs.

In a decision Friday, the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal accepted the bulk of Bratzer's complaint for filing, despite protestations from the police department that the allegations contained within it fell outside of a six-month time limit.

Bratzer is the president of the Canadian branch of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) and supports the eventual full legalization and regulation of all drugs. He regularly participates in public forums on drug policy and writes opinion pieces on what he views as the failures of the War on Drugs.

According to tribunal documents, when Bratzer first joined LEAP in 2008, he told his bosses that he would let them know when he performed any public work on behalf of LEAP, and promised he would always make clear that his views were personal and did not represent those of VicPD.

Despite those pledges, which he says he has kept, Bratzer alleges that he has been barred from participating in a panel discussion on harm reduction, ordered not to publicly comment on the Washington State's successful marijuana legalization referendum and repeatedly reminded of Graham's disapproval.

Those actions, Bratzer told the tribunal, "demonstrate repeated efforts to restrict, prevent or deter him from the responsible public expression, outside working hours, of his political belief."

The complaint also names Insp. Jamie Pearce, who last year wrote a letter to Bratzer informing him that he must get advance permission from his officer in charge before giving a public opinion that is "contrary to positions that the executive of Board of the Victoria Police Department is taking, or is reasonably expected to take on behalf of the Department."

Bratzer's allegations have yet to be argued in front of the tribunal.

blindsay@vancouversun.com