THUNDER BAY - Following the release of a report by the Office of the Independent Police Review Director that found systemic racism in the Thunder Bay Police Service, senior management with the police service has reviewed all 44 recommendations, and while some work has already begun, implementing other needed changes will be dependent on additional funding.
During the Thunder Bay Police Services Board meeting on Tuesday, chief Sylvie Hauth and Police Service lawyer, Holly Walbourne, presented a report on the preliminary work being done to address the OIPRD recommendations following a meeting by senior management in early January.
One of the key recommendations handed down by Independent Police Review Director, Gerry McNeilly, was the reinvestigation of 10 sudden death cases due to a lack of quality in the initial investigations.
“At this time, those files are being reviewed and a final decision as to the re-investigation, or the extent of such re-investigation, will be decided upon shortly,” the report reads.
The OIPRD report calls for a multi-discipline investigation team to be established, as well as an external peer review for three years, as part of the reinvestigations.
“At this time, correspondence is being sent out to gauge interest of key stakeholders who could assist with the multi-discipline investigation team,” the report reads. “We are hoping that some of these individuals and agencies would also overlap and assist in the external peer-review process.”
During the Police Board meeting, questions were raised about some of the investigations already being reviewed, including four cases that were reviewed as part of the Seven Youth Inquest.
“It’s really looking at next steps in terms of how fulsome and how far is the reinvestigation going to go,” Hauth said. “It is currently a work in progress.”
“We really want to reach out to other stakeholders, in terms of the coroner’s office for example, and probably other organizations that had nothing to do with the initial investigation to get that different perspective.”
The Police Service is also looking into adding in car cameras, body worn cameras, and requiring all officers to wear name tags.
Thunder Bay Mayor, Bill Mauro, asked if it was necessary for officers to be forced to display their names and if a badge number would be sufficient.
“My thought is it is the cost of doing business,” Hauth said after the meeting. “There is an expectation that when you are on duty, that you identify yourself and that people know you are a police officer. You are not giving away your date of birth or your address. It is just your last name.”
Hauth also highlighted work that began before the release of the report, including the Organizational Change Project.
“There have been a lot of things that have been done in the last two years,” she said. “The Organizational Change Project, for example, is one of those areas where we started from the get go to say these are three areas we need to start on right away.”
Other recommendations, including adding additional officers to the Criminal Investigation Branch and creating a Major Crime Unit, will require substantial financial support.
On Tuesday, Hauth requested an additional $1 million on top of the $41.8 million police operating budget to cover the cost of several recommendations, including adding the Major Crime Unit. City council deferred the decision to Jan. 30.
“A lot of it comes to funding,” Hauth said. “It’s really a matter of support we need financially to actualize some of those asks. I think the biggest one is the training component and bolstering those numbers in terms of the Criminal Investigation Branch.”
Hauth advised the Police Services Board that reviewing and implementing the recommendations in the OIPRD report is in the early stages. She expects to have a more comprehensive report completed in the next six months to be presented in June, though she will continue to provide the board with monthly updates.
“The OIPRD recommendations are more difficult for the force,” said Police Services Board administrator, Thomas Lockwood. “As a board, we are an oversight body. We don’t force them to do it, we just see what they are doing. I think if we get this report from Sylvie on an ongoing basis it will be very helpful.”
