If the original company didn't send them a remastered widescreen prints then putting mattes on the 4:3 image would have taken quality away. Still, I'm not sure why the original company would spend money by working on a 4:3 print unless widescreen prints are gone/lost/missing. They should certainly get the blame and not BCI since they can only work with what's given to them.

Warner actually doesn't have any widescreen prints of POLICE ACADEMY 4 and 5 so they had to release them 4:3.