THUNDER BAY -- The man responsible for leading complaint reviews against Ontario’s police services believes officer training, communication and mediation can lead to systemically more amicable resolutions.
Ontario’s independent police review director Gerry McNeilly appeared before the Thunder Bay Police Services Board on Tuesday to present an overview of the OIRPD’s role in overseeing police complaints.
Sixty per cent of complaints against police province-wide are based in citizens feeling as though officers were uncivil in their interactions.
McNeilly feels a generational shift is underway wherein young officers who more accustomed to communicating through text messages are addressing civilians so directly it can be interpreted as curt.
He recommended officers train to employ a conversational approach to diffuse unnecessary escalation.
“I don’t know if you’ve communicated with a young officer recently. They speak – as half of my staff do – in short sentences. They don’t speak in long sentences. They don’t give you a lot of information,” he said.
“It’s very short, very directive and very specific. And that’s how I believe they interact with members of the public and that creates a problem.”
Local citizens made 27 complaints against Thunder Bay officers between April 2014 and March 2015, an average number for a city of its size.
“Any number is too high for me because one of my jobs is to try to see if we can reduce public complaints by bringing a better understanding to members of the public and police officers who interact with them,” McNeilly said.
“I don’t want to say it’s necessarily high but would I like to see less complaints coming out of Thunder Bay? Sure. That’s what I try to encourage and that’s why we try to resolve as many matters as possible.”
The figures demonstrate the effect McNeilly’s mediation approach is having on resolving conflict without resorting to formal tribunals.
Of those 27 complaints, 12 were screened out and one was withdrawn. Among the 14 cases that were screened in, 10 were deemed unsubstantiated, three were withdrawn during the investigation and one reached an informal resolution.
None were ultimately deemed substantiated.
Thunder Bay Police Service Chief J.P. Levesque praised McNeilly’s priority on mediation to resolve conflict, adding the approach has developed a healthy relationship between his staff and the OIPRD office.
Levesque said officer training specific to improving customer service has become a staple of broader professional development. He suggested both civilians and officers can play a role in diffusing tension.
“A person really needs to look in the mirror when they have a connection with the police and say, ‘OK, how did I treat the officer?’” he said.
“We have to rise above that and I understand that. But we’re only human as well and sometimes our officers can go somewhat offside and not act as professionally as they should and try to ensure people have the voice to say, ‘I don’t appreciate the way I was treated’ and deal with it through a number of different resolution methods.”
OPIRD staff will spend this week trying to achieve that balance as they teach high school students about their rights and conduct to cooperate with those upholding the law.
“It’s not a one-way street. It’s a two-way street,” McNeilly said.
“The public needs the police and the police need the public, right? We want to pass on to those kids: ‘you have some rights but coming with those rights, you also have some responsibilities.’”
