A B.C. union official has been charged with threatening the lives of NDP MLA Jenny Kwan and her family and throwing dog feces on the roof of their home.
Kimberly Burton Pollock, a researcher for United Steelworkers in Burnaby, was charged Friday with one count of uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm and one count of mischief after an investigation by a special prosecutor.
According to court documents, Pollock allegedly approached Kwan's husband Robert Daniel Small in December with threats to harm his family, and then hurled excrement on the roof of the family's Vancouver home on April 1.
The family was home at the time and someone called 911 immediately, Const. Lindsey Houghton told ctvbc.ca.
Kwan is a prominent member of the New Democrats who gained notoriety last year as the figurehead of the dissident "baker's dozen," which called for the resignation of former leader Carole James.
Kwan declined to comment on the charges Monday.
Pollock is a prolific writer on labour and political issues, and has written a handbook for union activists entitled "What Every Worker Needs to Know about Capitalism."
Ken Neumann, the national director for the United Steelworkers, said in a statement that the union's district director has contacted Kwan to express regret for the alleged incidents.
"I am told that both the BC NDP and Jenny Kwan have acknowledged the United Steelworkers' expression of regret and have indicated that they understand the United Steelworkers had nothing to do with the incident," Neumann said.
