Close X
Saturday, November 23, 2024
ADVT 
National

'Canada is watching': New northern Alberta police service trying to lead by example

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 04 Nov, 2024 01:54 PM
  • 'Canada is watching': New northern Alberta police service trying to lead by example

On the second floor of a building where most offices are without doors, the ceilings hang low and the carpets don't match, the chief of Grande Prairie’s new police force gets down to work.

"Don't focus on the building," Dwayne Lakusta said in a recent interview.

The 51-year-old was picked over a year ago to head up a new municipal police service in this city of 60,000 in Alberta’s northwest, replacing the RCMP. It's to be the first new force in Alberta in more than 60 years. 

With three decades of experience, Lakusta has overseen the deployment of a small group of officers working with local RCMP.

The Mounties remain in charge until the local force takes over primary jurisdiction on April 1, 2026.

Lakusta said it will take a new approach based on surveys and research done in other jurisdictions calling for police to be more responsive, particularly to youth.

The result, he said, is a "non-traditional" policing model that will deploy mobile outreach workers alongside enforcement officers. 

"It's a holistic approach toward community safety and well-being," Lakusta said.

"If it's a call for a suicide, we'll send a mental health worker instead of an officer with a gun."

Grande Prairie Mayor Jackie Clayton said the stakes are high.

"It's an opportunity for us to do something unique,” Clayton said in an interview at city hall. 

“I know a lot of Canada is watching to see how this unfolds … (the service) will build a sort of template for other municipalities that are looking to transition."

Coun. Dylan Bressey said the idea came about in 2018.

"There were conversations going on in Alberta about a provincial police service," he said.

Bressey said while debating the idea council became aware the RCMP's contracts across the country would expire in March 2032.

Clayton said council’s decision in 2023 to cancel the RCMP deal was difficult but necessary.

"There's an emotional attachment to the RCMP. It's a symbolic piece of Canada, it's history and so, change is hard," said Clayton. But she said the city was ready for a service more tailored to local needs.

Chris Thiessen was the only councillor to turn thumbs down at the vote.

"My first no vote was really just to delay and to give our public the opportunity to be more part of the discussion," Thiessen said in an interview.

And there’s the money.

"For us to be able to do a cost analysis five years from now, for instance, is tricky. We're just ballparking numbers.

"We have to do a good job showing that the services have a greater net benefit to the community, and it's worth the costs."

A recent cost analysis by the city indicates there will be savings, particularly due to lower administrative charges.

Clayton and Lakusta said a few other communities in Alberta and at least one in Nova Scotia are watching closely as they consider making the transition. 

Surrey, B.C., is moving away from the RCMP, but the transition has met resistance as its council attempted to undo a previous decision to create a new service.

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke raised concerns about how much the transition was costing taxpayers. In July, a judicial review ruled British Columbia has the authority to complete the transition from the RCMP to the local force.

Lakusta says starting a service from the grassroots in Grande Prairie has so far been beneficial because it comes with "no baggage."

"(The) only thing we can do is build trust," he said.

MORE National ARTICLES

Suspected MDMA seizure by Delta Police

Suspected MDMA seizure by Delta Police
Police in Delta say officers seized about 87 kilograms of suspected M-D-M-A during a traffic stop in the city. They say occupants of the vehicle were arrested but have been released pending further investigation.

Suspected MDMA seizure by Delta Police

3 teens charged in transit assault

3 teens charged in transit assault
Transit police in Metro Vancouver say three teenage girls have been charged for two violent assaults that happened on public transit in Surrey in July. They say around 9 P-M on July 11th, the group attacked a 16-year-old at a SkyTrain station and later beat an 18-year-old woman on a bus following a verbal assault. 

3 teens charged in transit assault

CP Railway adjusts safety measures following B.C. train crash: safety board

CP Railway adjusts safety measures following B.C. train crash: safety board
The board's report says the supervisor was inspecting the main tracks on Dec. 29, 2022, in a vehicle that can operate on both roads and rail when he noticed a defect that needed repair.  It says that while the man was repairing the track, an eastbound freight train crashed into the unoccupied vehicle, but no one was hurt.

CP Railway adjusts safety measures following B.C. train crash: safety board

Singh says he doesn't understand why Poilievre won't get top security clearance

Singh says he doesn't understand why Poilievre won't get top security clearance
Singh said party leaders need to be briefed on top-secret information, noting the allegations this week that Indian agents played a role in the extortion, coercion and murder of Canadian citizens on Canadian soil. 

Singh says he doesn't understand why Poilievre won't get top security clearance

B.C. smashes advance voting record with a million ballots already cast

B.C. smashes advance voting record with a million ballots already cast
Elections BC says a record number of British Columbians have already cast their ballots in advance voting before Saturday's provincial election. The elections body says just over a million people have voted, representing more than 28 per cent of all registered electors and putting the province on track for big overall turnout.

B.C. smashes advance voting record with a million ballots already cast

Here are some facts about British Columbia's housing market

Here are some facts about British Columbia's housing market
Here are some statistics about housing in B.C. from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's 2024 Rental Market Report, issued in January, and the B.C. Real Estate Association's August 2024 report.

Here are some facts about British Columbia's housing market