Sask. RCMP’s top Mountie talks higher staff vacancies, firearms, marshals
Assistant Commissioner Rhonda Blackmore wants more boots on the ground as gangs and violent crime proliferate.
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With a number of policing issues in the spotlight, Saskatchewan RCMP will likely be busier than ever as they grapple with more violent crime, job vacancies and the politics around firearms.
Among the issues top of mind for Assistant Commissioner Rhonda Blackmore is having more officers work in rural communities, where job vacancies have noticeably grown. She would like to get more boots on the ground as gangs and the number of offenders on warrant proliferate.
The Leader-Post spoke with Blackmore during a phone interview on Friday to discuss these issues, as well as Ottawa’s gun buy back program, the provincial government’s proposed marshals team and Indigenous policing.
Staff vacancies
While it’s well known it takes RCMP longer to respond to calls in rural and northern communities, residents’ concerns over service delivery appear to have grown.
Part of that might be due to the fact RCMP has more empty positions to fill than it did five years ago.
According to data provided to the Leader-Post, RCMP’s hard vacancy rate was 3.88 per cent in 2017. This year, it’s 10.07 per cent, an increase Blackmore described as “noticeable.” Hard vacancy refers to a vacant position within a unit that does not have a regular member assigned to it.
She said a “perfect storm” of sorts led to the higher rate; COVID-19 had shut down the training facility and there had been anti-police sentiment following the death of George Floyd in the United States. RCMP also hasn’t been immune to the larger issue of labour shortages across all sectors, she added.
However, Blackmore said the organization is swiftly addressing this. They have made it easier for prospects to apply and have established an Indigenous recruiting unit.
So far, 93 cadets have been posted to Saskatchewan this year, a number she described as “significant” given the resourcing challenges.
“We’re targeting it constantly,” she said.
RCMP sorely need these staff, she noted, given Saskatchewan has seen a “significant increase” in violent crime. Over the last 10 years, violent crime has grown by 25 per cent.
What’s driving the increase is a growing number of gangs, particularly up north and west-central Saskatchewan. She said gangs may have been able to capitalize on the pandemic, recruiting those who felt socially isolated.
RCMP are also seeing more illegal drugs, which often go hand-in-hand with gangs. Drugs have additionally been a factor in property crime, where people are stealing items for their habit. In turn, property crime has slightly increased after a brief dip, she said.
The increase in crime intensity means officers need to work harder while also doing more administrative work, a task she believes could instead be done by administrators. Should officers be relieved of that workload, they could spend more time on the ground.
Marshals
As Blackmore looks to hire more staff, the last thing she needs is RCMP to be competing with yet another police team.
That’s where her main concerns lie with the Saskatchewan government’s proposed marshals service. Should a new team come to fruition, she hopes it doesn’t take away from the labour pool RCMP hopes to tap into.
However, it’s possible the marshals could pose other challenges.
Blackmore said if more agencies are involved on a file, it can make it more difficult to ensure everyone is informed on an investigation.
She pointed to the United States, where there have been various jurisdictional issues over large-scale investigations. Back in Canada, the Emergencies Act Inquiry revealed policing agencies had a difficult time communicating during the convoy that clogged Ottawa and a key Ontario border.
“One of the things that is great about the Province of Saskatchewan is that there is so much seamless integration that happens between municipal agencies and the RCMP,” Blackmore said.
“I’ve been privy to more than one conversation with U.S. law enforcement, who have said how the Canadian model is certainly an envy of theirs, because they do see the benefits of having less agencies and less boundaries, and all of that sort of bureaucratic red-tape.”
Indigenous policing
Blackmore, however, is supportive of Indigenous communities establishing their own police services.
Following the mass stabbing tragedy in James Smith Cree Nation, Chief Wally Burns has asked for its own police service. Both federal and provincial governments have been open to that idea.
Blackmore said RCMP’s recently resurrected Indigenous recruiting unit goes into Indigenous communities to build relationships and speak with youth who might be interested in the job.
She said it’s important RCMP has representation that reflects the communities it serves. She also sees the Mounties as ground zero for Indigenous cadets who would like to later work for an Indigenous-run policing service.
“You can’t just start up a police force and immediately have individuals who are able to successfully run a police service,” she said. “They (Indigenous recruits) will have that experience; they will bring that experience to the table, as opposed to being brand new. And I think that’s really important.”
Addressing offenders on warrants
On Thursday, the provincial government announced plans to target “prolific high offenders” on warrant and cut them off social benefits if they are receiving them. The province wants to make sure this doesn’t negatively affect the offender’s spouse or children.
Policing Minister Christine Tell revealed Myles Sanderson, who was the main subject in the three-day man hunt, was on social assistance at the time.
When asked how Sanderson couldn’t be tracked down if he was on social benefits, Blackmore said she didn’t have insight into that.
She said there is a significant number of people out on warrant, noting RCMP has to prioritize which ones to target based on risk factors. For example, a person charged with homicide would be targeted first.
At the time, Blackmore said, Sanderson was out on warrant for not reporting to his parole officer, suggesting he likely wasn’t a top priority.
She added that many individuals on warrant aren’t just sitting at home; they’re actively evading police.
Firearms
Saskatchewan’s relationship with Ottawa over the RCMP’s potential role in collecting firearms could soon become frosty.
Tell introduced legislation on Thursday that would require “seizure agents” acting on behalf of the federal government to receive a licence with the province’s firearms officer if they want to collect firearms.
Ottawa is looking to initiate a buy back program, but Tell doesn’t want any provincial RCMP resources partaking in that plan.
Blackmore said she is not certain of RCMP’s role because details of the program have not been finalized. She again noted staff are already dealing with a lot of work.
If RCMP participate, Tell said the government will weigh all of its options, noting it “could even get more interesting.”
Saskatchewan’s legislation states RCMP are not seizure agents. Any agent can’t wear police uniforms, badges or insignia that’s similar in colour and design to municipal police services and RCMP, it states.
Blackmore asked people to report any crime they see because it helps alert RCMP of specific crimes in their area. People can easily do this online, she added.
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