City of Kamloops Community Safety Officers (Image credit: CFJC Today/File photo).

By Doug Collins

ONE MAN'S OPINION

COLLINS: Don’t expect quick results from new community safety committee

Jul 30, 2023 | 6:00 AM

AFTER MONTH OF FARTING AROUND, it seems that at least some of our committees are finally starting to get a little work done. But don’t expect much to happen for a while. The engine is still in the roundhouse and hasn’t started to build up a head of steam.

The new select standing committee on policing had its first meeting recently. The first thing it did was to change the committee name to more accurately reflect its goals. It will now be known as the safety and security select committee.

What that does is clearly indicate that the scope of the committee covers more than just policing, but also covers other aspects of community safety. A good first step in setting up guidelines for the future.

The Committee, chaired by Councillor Kelly Hall with Councillors Dale Bass and Katie Neustaeter, is a solid one but their first three priorities are going to take a lot of thinking and discussion with a lot of different groups and agencies to gain any traction. Those priorities are increased power and status for the Bylaw Enforcement Officers, now known as Community Service Officers, a new Community Court, and a Mandatory Action Table, which has the potential to become another level of bureaucracy if not handled right. Same with a Community Court, which could become a big drain on the already heavily-taxed justice system.

And I don’t even want to get started on the idea of having CSOs elevated to the status of peace officers. It has some upside, but also a very serious downside. If their power is increased, will they get the additional training necessary to do their job? Are we going to arm them? If they’re put in increasing danger, do we give them guns? Really?

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I must say that Councillor Neustaeter’s comment to Kamloops This Week that they will become like “Junior RCMP officers” scares the hell out of me. That could open so many opportunities for abuse. Who will lead these junior cops?

It’s too early to be too critical. The Committee hasn’t even set its terms of reference yet. But with the amount of planning that has to go into each of these three major priorities, it will likely be well into the second half of this council’s term before we see anything concrete. These things are too big to rush through.

One can only hope there will be some minor things accomplished before the end of the year so that the public can see some tangible results. I don’t think Councillor Bass will let things drag out more than necessary, but the real pressure will be on the Chair, Councillor Kelly Hall, to keep things moving. Let’s see if he’s up to the task.

I’m Doug Collins and that’s One Man’s Opinion.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.