What Mayor Dilkens has said about the Bellaire discipline, and what the record shows

Asked about the Bellaire investigation Oct. 14, Mayor Drew Dilkens, police board chair, said the board approved training as the sanction. Public minutes name none; we found no record it was completed. CBC reported more Oct. 22.

By Kyle L. Stewart | Published Oct. 23, 2026, 6:43 p.m. ET | Windsor, Ontario

Topics: Public safety Council and City Hall

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Asked on Oct. 14 about the investigation involving former Windsor police chief Jason Bellaire, Mayor Drew Dilkens, who chairs the Windsor Police Service Board, said the board approved training as the sanction. No public record shows what the board decided or whether the training was completed. Dilkens is a candidate in Windsor's mayoral election on Monday, Oct. 26. This story sets out what is on the record and what is not.

What Dilkens said on Oct. 14

At the Black Council of Windsor-Essex's mayoral candidate event, a moderator asked how he would ensure accountability when allegations are substantiated. According to the event video, Dilkens said "calling it out is number one." He also said the board approved recommendations that employees at the time take training, that "the board ensured that happened," and that "that was the sanction." He did not name Bellaire. The quotes come from YouTube's automatic captions, at about 53 minutes into the video.

What CBC reported on Oct. 22

CBC reported that Dilkens told it the board's actions were "very public," and quoted him as saying, "That wasn't a hidden process." CBC reported that when its reporter asked why he thought that form of discipline was appropriate, Dilkens walked away and said "I'm here to talk about the campaign." CBC also reported that Leslie McCurdy, a past chair of the Black Council, called his comments "disingenuous." CBC described Bellaire's comments as racist remarks and reported that the findings and discipline were not made public until CBC published them. Windsor News has no second source for the Oct. 22 account.

What the board's public record shows

Dilkens stepped aside as board chair on Jan. 16, 2025, and Coun. Jo-Anne Gignac chaired for 2025. Dilkens stayed on the board and has been chair again since January 2026. The board's public minutes for its July 24, 2025, closed session list only general items, such as "Personal matters about an identifiable individual." They do not name Bellaire, training or a sanction. CBC reported in July 2025, citing a source, that the board required Bellaire to complete training. The board did not comment then.

As our Oct. 2 story reported, a third-party investigation concluded Jan. 16, 2025, substantiated that Bellaire made comments that breach Windsor police directives, according to a confidential summary obtained by CBC. The summary did not say which comments.

What we asked

On Oct. 1, we asked the Dilkens campaign whether Bellaire has any role in the campaign. It did not respond. On Oct. 21, we asked the board whether the required training was completed. Its answer is due Monday, Oct. 26, at noon.

At about 1:39 p.m. ET on Friday, Oct. 23, we emailed the campaign four questions: whether CBC's account of Oct. 22 is accurate; what he said publicly about the findings before CBC's March 2025 report; whether the training was completed, when and who confirmed it, and whether he will ask the board to release that confirmation before Monday's vote; and whether Bellaire has any role in or contact with the campaign. We asked for a reply by 6:30 p.m. ET.

The campaign did not respond by the 6:30 p.m. ET deadline.