The Surrey Now is reporting that "Surrey's time-honored Auxiliary Constable program is experiencing turmoil following a national RCMP directive on January 27 prohibiting the volunteer cops from participating in ride-alongs with regular, armed Mounties."
This new restriction is a concern. "Some volunteers join the program hoping to become a regular paid cop and saw the ride-alongs as good practical training to that end, Bayda noted." Indeed. On the job experience is good. A volunteer program is good. It helps balance the budget. "Bonnie Mellor, honored in 2011 as Surrey RCMP's Auxiliary Constable of the Year, recently wrote a scathing letter to the editor charging the program has been reduced to shreds. 'Why would Surrey prefer to pay thousands of dollars in overtime,' she wrote, 'as opposed to having volunteers at events and doing patrols to keep our neighborhood safe?'" Bonnie is absolutely right.
"In 2015 Surrey's auxiliaries volunteered more than 20,000 hours of their time. Surrey RCMP - Canada's largest detachment - has 80 auxiliary constables, making it the largest contingent of roughly 1,500 auxiliaries across the nation. More than 700 are in B.C. The volunteer officers are equipped with a baton, pepper spray and a flashlight, but no gun."
"The new changes are a federal, not a local, directive resulting from the conclusions of a year-long policy review following the fatal Jan. 17, 2015 shooting of RCMP Constable David Wynn at Apex Casino outside Edmonton, Alberta." That single event had nothing to do with Auxiliary police. In a traffic stop, having an auxiliary officer in the car to radio for help if something goes wrong increases the officer's safety. Likewise, if an auxiliary officer was in the car to radio for backup in the Alberta tragedy, that situation might have been handled more effectively. More on the job training mght have saved Hudson Brook's life in Whiterock who was shot dead by a rookie cop while running to the police for help from people trying to kill him.
The news article quotes some nonsense from the idiot of the year, Bill Fordy. Obviously this directive isn't his fault as it comes from Ottawa but he is fulfilling his mandate of being a puppet without a brain. I'm not saying Fordy should publically speak out against it and discredit his superiors. I'm saying he should be doing what he can behind the scenes to reverse the decision. But he's not. He's not paid to think. He's paid to be a puppet. That's why they have someone more interested in sending sex texts and shagging coworkers then in doing his job. He does what he's told and nothing gets done. That's the master plan.
Before Bill Fordy there was someone really competent in charge of E Division. I met him at Surrey central. They had a huge display of police and auxiliary on quads along with a mobile command centre. It was impressive. The quads were for park patrols in the downtown core when crack heads flee police on foot.
While speaking with the officer he noticed some kids, excused himself and spoke with the kids before returning to our conversation. He said, sorry, those kids were from the UN and they know they aren't suposed to be here. I was surprised because they just looked like a couple of Surrey kids selling pot. It was also very proactive he knew who they are and was on top of things. That's called crime prevention. Something Bill Fordy has no clue about. Thus the Newton problem.
Bob Paulson came highly recommended. I was told he was one of the good guys. Then I find out he was with Bill Fordy and Craig Callen on a "fishing trip" at Pitt Lake. My response was, if Bob Paulson was a good guy then what the hell is he doing hanging out with Bill Fordy and Craig Callen? Was he really just another FOCCer? (Friends of Craig Callen) That's what it looked like.
The Surrey Now also reported on another great volunteer program in Surrey involving the Crime Prevention society. This is a good program. They help reduce car theft in Guildford and Surrey Place Mall. The effectiveness of that program is put into question when the police adapt the policy of letting crack delaers sell crack in Newton and refuse to arrest them. The volunteers could help identify the crack dealers for the police to arrest but they don't because they police won't arrest the crack dealers even if the businesses complaining about them refusing to leave outside their business. That policy is bad business and is the root of the problem.
Rememeber the Vancovuer 2010 Winter Olympics? That huge success was made possible due to the hard work and dedication of an army of volunteers knowns as smurfs. It wasn't a derogatory nickname. It was just because they wore light blue jackets. They were friendly, positive, polite and persistent. Their positive zeal permeated the event. Likewise, volunteers in community policing is more than just saving money. It helps the police see there are a lot of good people out there that care about their community. It is important for the police to see that when they interact with bad guys all day.
I can think of two concerns that might prompt this.
ReplyDeleteOne is WTF does an auxiliary do if they're on the street and circumstances arise where they might need to be armed with more than a baton? Oops....
Two is, what happens if something goes south and they are needed to keep their mouth shut? Not all of them are trying to get on full time, they do not have a "full stake" in the situation and some of them might not be as malleable/politically reliable as management would like. As an aside to such a concern, if they are doing street time with the full timers, they may also wind up with more knowledge, that it's considered a liability for them to have without them being tied in via a paycheck.
The RCMP could always respond honestly and forthrightly to a FOIA request for all paperwork/interoffice correspondence/memo's regarding this decision, the better to including the public in their own policing, but that's a bit of a stretch.
They are always with a cop who is armed. The Bobbies in England walk the beat and don't have guns. If guns are pulled they call for backup. Getting rid of the auxiliary program makes the current system ineffective while at the same time burns more tax dollars.
DeleteI would suggest Poulson and Fordy go back a ways. Poulson at one time was the chief at the Comox Valley detachment. So these two are B.C. boys.
ReplyDeleteWhy any dept. would want to get rid of the auxiliary or reduce their contribution is beyond me. However, it might be some one wants more staff and that would start by reducing the involvement of the auxiliary. Do remember Poulson was a creation of the former P.M.
the VPD has always had auxiliary police officers. They do a great job of traffic control. I can remember seeing them even 50 years ago doing traffic control during PNE time. It makes sense. the police department has a pool of workers who they can rely on and over the years some volunteers do develop real strengths and local knowledge which can be shared with new RCMP officers.
Not permitting auxiliary officers on ride alongs is just plain stupid. as you pointed out, there is some one left in the car to call for help, if necessary. With newer police officers coming into an area such as Surrey, having a ride along volunteer, the new officer may gain a lot of local knowledge from the volunteer. Oh, well no one has been able to say the RCMP have been the brightest lights on the block for several decades. Just have a look at the 300 former officers who had to file a class action lawsuit. That about says it all about the RCMP.