Click on the video above for a brief overview of this issue. Includes exclusive footage of Victoria Police Chief Jamie Graham’s presentation to Esquimalt Council, as well as interviews with Chief Graham and Esquimalt Mayor Barb Desjardins.
Click on the video above to watch Chief Jamie Graham’s presentation to Esquimalt Council on August 17, 2009.
Click on the video above to watch an interview with Esquimalt Mayor Barb Desjardins talking about Policing in Esquimalt.
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Esquimalt Re-examines Arrangement With Victoria Police Department
The Township of Esquimalt is the only municipality in British Columbia that does not have the ability to determine its own policing abilities. The Chair of the police board falls to the Mayor of Victoria, leaving Esquimalt with Deputy-Chair, a position that was created specifically when the two municipalities amalgamated their police forces. Since the amalgamation in 2003, Esquimalt has been paying 14 percent of the overall Victoria Police budget. Currently, crime calls in Esquimalt make up less than 10 percent of calls responded to by the Victoria Police.
“There is an inequity, potentially, in what we are paying and the service we are receiving… The percentages were based when amalgamation occurred. They based the percentage on the way we pay for CRD which is a per capita basis, so 14 percent had no reflection on crime rate or services we receive,” said the Mayor of the Township of Esquimalt, Barb Desjardins. “It may have been off right from the beginning. To be fair, five years, six years is a reasonable amount of time to test that theory, but no longer, considering the fact that our police budget is going up.”
On August 17, 2009, Victoria Police Chief Jamie Graham presented crime statistics to the Township of Esquimalt. The request for the presentation was made by the Mayor after information was presented to the police board. The Mayor requested that the Victoria Police present this information to Council. The Victoria Police department provided a breakdown of information such as: numbers of calls, the types of calls and the locations of calls.
“If you look, many of the statistics are below 10 percent so you think we are not getting our fair share, many of the statistics are higher,” said Victoria Chief of Police, Jamie Graham.
Chief Graham focused on the areas in which crime in Esquimalt is higher than average, listing off areas such as; arson, youth offenses, abandoned vehicles, suicide, mental health calls, missing persons, sudden deaths and domestic violence.
As part of their investigation into the statistics presented to them, Esquimalt will be looking at which crime areas are lower than average for the township.
“It’s interesting that the police identified the ones that were higher but didn’t give us an indication on which ones were lower. So we’ve asked them to go back and find out which ones were lower,” said Mayor Desjardins.
Esquimalt has its own police station, located in its town core. The West Division in Esquimalt provides a number of services specific to the township as well as supports some of the work that is done for the Greater Victoria area.
“We have a Community Resource Officer here who works with the community specifically here in the West Division. We have a Sergeant that is a West Division Sergeant who oversees operations out of this Station. We also have 4 School Liaison or School Resource Officers that service the Victoria and Esquimalt schools and there is 24 in total. Then our K-9 division also works out of this physical space,” said Inspector Darrell McLean with the West Division in Esquimalt.
(Continued on Page Two)
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Related Links
Esquimalt’s dropping crime rate an issue in police-funding debate
Times Colonist – August 18, 2009
Esquimalt Questions Policing Costs
Victoria News- August 18, 2009
Victoria police chief to address Esquimalt council
Times Colonist – August 17, 2009
It’s time for a municipal police merge
The Martlet – Aug 13, 2009
Acting Police Chief Welcomes Esquimalt Service Review
C-FAX 1070 – December 16, 2008
Policing “in crisis,” amalgamation needed, police board says
Times Colonist – July 9, 2008
Esquimalt agrees to police budget … with conditions
Times Colonist – March 11, 2008
Police pitch budget boost to Esquimalt
Times Colonist- Feb 12, 2008
Esquimalt unlikely to spend more on police
Times Colonist- January 8, 2008
Merging of police departments still has detractors in Esquimalt
Times Colonist – December 11, 2007
Victoria police costs: The real numbers
Times Colonist – April 11, 2007
Councillors share police-cost pain
Times Colonist – April 5, 2007
Esquimalt gasps as police costs rocket
TImes Colonist – Mar 30, 2007
Business owners want Esquimalt police patrols
Times Colonist – Nov 24, 2006
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