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Community leaders offer input at RCMP annual performance meeting

Jul 25, 2017 | 5:00 PM

Community safety, reducing crime and ensuring the right supports are in place were the main topic for many community leaders today. 

The Battlefords RCMP came together with a number of area community partners to gather input and provide an update on policing strategies.

RCMP Insp. John Sutherland outlined statistical data and policing strategies during the session.  

“The focus of this meeting is to have a community planning session involving all our policing partners, local governments and individuals that we invite to identify what their issues are in their communities, and incorporate that into our annual strategic planning for our service delivery,” Sutherland said. He also handed out a questionnaire for participants to complete as part of the review.

Sutherland said earlier this year, the detachment started a community policing support team, the goal of which was to get more community contacts into the area, including schools. 

This is “to make sure we move more from a reactionary type of police force, which we have been predominately here because of the high call-volumes, to more of a force where we are in touch and speaking with the communities and [are] involved with them,” Sutherland said, adding he recently spent a week in England observing officers’ roles in policing and service delivery.

The performance plan is a living document with four quarterly reports which Sutherland said “is internal in our system to guide us through the year.”

City of North Battleford Mayor Ryan Bater asked about policing procedures if marijuana becomes legal a year from now.

“I don’t think any of us want to share the road with anybody who is high, just like we don’t want to share the road with people who are drunk,” Bater said.

Sutherland indicated police can perform sobriety tests, including a swab test, to determine whether a driver is under the influence of marijuana. He agreed legalizion is “a complex issue.” 

Bater said one of the city’s main issues is addressing root causes of crime.

“Addictions are a big problem … and tend to fuel property crimes,” Bater said. “Domestic violence – a lot of that comes from alcohol and drug abuse. Poverty and other mental health issues – these are all determinants of crime in our community, and we have to stay focused on them.”

He said administration needs to work with other agencies in the community to address the social issues. He added that’s why the North Battleford Crime Prevention HUB exists.

“It’s all part of a big, broad community safety strategy,” Bater said.

Town of Battleford Mayor Ames Leslie asked Sutherland if there’s potential for volunteer drive programs such as Operation Red Nose to operate year-round. 

He added continual police presence on the town’s streets is a priority for him.

“Sometimes having that patrol vehicle drive around kind of deters crime,” Leslie said. “They are busy but I just want to make sure there is always a constant flow of the marked vehicles coming through the community.”   

Leslie said he wants to make sure the RCMP’s strategies are aligned with the needs of the town and other partners.  

Beyond the city and town, Sutherland heard concerns from neighbouring First Nations about the number of patrols. He plans to meet with Sweetgrass First Nation soon.

Village of Meota Mayor John MacDonald also attended. His concern was the surge in population from 300 to 3,000 over the summer months which brings more bylaw infractions and property crime. 

 

angela.brown@jpbg.ca

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