By Sylene Argent, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Essex Free Press
When the monthly calls for service report for the months of January and February were presented at the April 14 meeting of the Essex County OPP Detachment Police Services Board-North, it had a new format.
That raised questions with Lakeshore Mayor Tracey Bailey.
In the past, the monthly reports presented would detail the top calls for service, and further outline calls in a variety of categories – such as motor vehicle collisions, mental health calls, drug offences, traffics stops, impaired driving, and criminal code matters – by municipality in the County that are policed by the OPP.
The monthly reports submitted last week combined the stats of the three municipalities the Essex County OPP Detachment Board-North oversees, which is Essex, Lakeshore, and Tecumseh. And, the format did not present the stats of the Essex County OPP Detachment Board-South, which oversees Kingsville, Leamington, Caldwell First Nations, and Pelee Township.
On April 1, 2024, the Province’s Community Safety and Policing Act, 2019 (CSPA) came into effect. As part of this, municipal Police Services Boards merged with regional partners. That created the two separate boards in the area, instead of individual boards per municipality.
“Is this the style of report we can expect to see moving forward,” Mayor Bailey asked. “I note we don’t have the individual data per municipality, and I don’t believe that it dovetails either to show us what is happening kind of on the south shore.”
Essex County OPP Superintendent Mark Loucas said he is happy to work with the OPP’s Strategic Management Unit to address the issues with the report.
“This report is in a state of transition as feedback is being garnered from Detachment Commanders from across the province to input data that is relevant to the local communities,” Loucas said.
What the organization is trying to do, he explained, is the desire to have one report that is streamlined and consistent across Ontario, as opposed to each municipality getting what they did previously.
He said he has reported back to the Strategic Management Unit as to things the Essex County OPP Detachment wants to see in those reports. “We are working with them to continue developing it and making changes to it.”
The important piece is the feedback he gets, that he can then report back to the Strategic Management Unit to make amendments to the report.
“From what we are trying to do locally is to ensure that each municipality is getting [its] own report, respecting specifics to your area. But the report that is the actual public report is the one we are using…because to provide a 17-page report for each municipality would just be too time consuming and wouldn’t really show those metrics to show the graphs and trends that we are really looking at,” Loucas said.
With Lakeshore to receive data specific to its municipality, Bailey asked if that data could be presented in a public forum, or if it would be a non-public document.
Loucas replied he wants to share as much wholesome and transparent information as he can. From that report, they can raise questions or ask for clarification in an open forum or though consolation with the OPP staff.
Being able to understand what is happening in the region, Bailey believes, is important. She said there has seen value in looking at the full report and being able to see what is happening in her own municipality and others.
“We’ve enjoyed – I guess – the privilege of keeping our finger on what is happening, and if policing [has] decreased in one area, but increasing in another; and rightfully so, because it is following the data,” Bailey said. “But we are going to lose sight – I think – of what is happening regionally.”
Loucas said he can provide data for the OPP policed communities in Essex County.
Bailey made a motion, with the Essex County OPP Police Services Board-North supported, that the OPP be directed to provide the data of OPP policed communities in Essex County to the North Board.
Essex Mayor Sherry Bondy thanked Bailey for raising the issue. She noted there is a lot of discussion going on in Essex County as it relates to policing services.
Recently, Essex Council hosted a special meeting on policing that outlined billing models and the process the Town would need to take if it was to look into obtaining a different police service than its current contract with the OPP.
Two motions were presented and carried during that Essex Council meeting. The first was to send a letter to the Essex County OPP Detachment-North requesting officers be more present in community activities, in addition to more bike, foot, and ATV patrols. The other motion directed Town administration to work with the OPP to evaluate the facility needs within the municipality, with a focus on synergies and improved service delivery to local residents.
In addition, at a recent County of Essex Council meeting, a majority Council vote decided not to direct Administration to provide a report on the cost estimate for engaging a consultant to perform a feasibility study for Regional Policing.
“I think more information is probably better at this time, because I feel like we are actually making a lot of gains with OPP and their presence, and the work they are doing. And, we always want to be aware of what is going on in other member municipalities,” Bondy said.
Be the first to comment