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Homicide investigations spell bad news for police service's budget

The city shouldn't expect good news from the police budget with seven homicides to-date so far this year. Homicide investigations are the most complex and time-consuming aspect of work for the Thunder Bay Police Service.
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Deputy chief Andy Hay says police budget hard to manage this year. (Jamie Smith, tbnewswatch.com)

The city shouldn't expect good news from the police budget with seven homicides to-date so far this year.

Homicide investigations are the most complex and time-consuming aspect of work for the Thunder Bay Police Service. That means detectives, officers, investigators, support staff and others every time there is a homicide.

"All working around the clock, which means a huge impact on overtime dollars and pressures," Deputy Chief Andy Hay said.

"They are the highest priority investigations that we undertake and we have to do them  to a provincial standard."

Depending on the investigation, overtime costs alone can range from tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

"These seven investigations are going to put a great deal of pressure on our budget. We are attempting to manage it. How it's going to end up at the end of the year I don't' know but I don't expect it's going to be a real good news item for our budget with this many homicides to-date," Hay said.

Police also have to hold scenes during investigations, sometimes for days, which also drives up costs.





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