Police officer fired for illegal high-speed chase through downtown loses appeal for reinstatement

Despite arguing he was suffering from a serious mental illness at the time of an illegal high-speed chase, former sergeant Anthony Braile will not be reinstated with the Calgary Police Service after his appeal was dismissed on Tuesday.

Following a disciplinary hearing in 2016, Braile was fired after headmitted to nine counts of professional misconduct in connection with the 2008 chase.Heis only the second officer in 20 years to be fired from CPS.

• Sgt. Anthony Braile fired by Calgary police for high-speed chase

Braileappealed to theLaw Enforcement Review Board (LERB), which upheld the presiding officer'sdecision to dismiss. He then took his case to the Alberta Court of Appeal, which released its decision Tuesday.

Braileis currently on trial on charges of harassment and bribery in anunrelated case of alleged police corruption. Closing arguments in that case are set to take place in April

Braile drove 145 km/hdowntown

In December 2008, Braile, then a supervisor in District 2, pulled over a suspected drunk driver who then took off.

Braile called dispatch and told the operator the driver had sped away but said he had not followed the truck. He then chased the suspect for an hour, contrary to CPS policy.

During the chase, the two vehicles reached speeds of 145 km/h through residential communities and the downtown core in unfavourable weather conditions.

At one point, Braile used an internal messaging system to order a unit under his command help with the chase.

The chase ended when the suspect's truck T-boned a taxi, seriously injuring the cab driver. At that time, Braile and the suspect had been driving the wrong way on Fifth Ave. S.W.

Braile felt 'like a super cop'

Braileultimately pleaded guilty to a charge of careless driving under the Traffic Safety Act in 2013.

At the Police Act hearing several years later,Braile argued he was suffering from bipolar spectrum disorder at the time of the chase.

A forensic psychiatrist hired by Braile gave the opinion that at the time of the chase, the officer was in a "hypomanic state which affected his ability to function normally."

Braile had been taking a new medication that made him feel "like a super cop at work: invincible, untouchable and more skilled than other police officers."

The doctor went on to say Braile "felt like the law didn't apply to him."

The presiding officer ultimately rejected that theory because of a lack of supporting evidence.

A spokesperson for CPS says the organization is "unable to comment as this an employment issue."