Winnipeg Police Service

Infobox Police Department
name = Winnipeg Police Service

motto =
established = 1874
jurisdiction = Municipal
sworn = 1318
non-sworn = 413
stations = 6
chief = Keith McCaskill
website = http://www.winnipeg.ca/police/

The Winnipeg Police Service is the police force of the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

History

When Winnipeg became a city in 1873, an election was held to select the city's new Mayor and Aldermen. Those appointed decided to hire city officials, including a Chief Constable. On February 23, 1874, John S. Ingram was appointed the first Chief of Police of Winnipeg.

During the 1919 Winnipeg General Strike, most of the force was replaced with 2000 better paid special constables for refusing to sign a declaration promising to not belong to a union or participate in a sympathy strike, even though they remained on duty during the strike. The union was thus broken, and Chris H. Newton became the acting Chief Constable.

In 1972, Winnipeg merged with its eight neighbouring communities, causing the amalgamation of the communities, but still having eight police services with different uniforms and radio channels. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) contract for Charleswood and Headingly was cancelled, and that area fell under the Inner City patrol area. On October 21, 1974, the amalgamation of the services was complete, and the remaining eight services formed into six districts. On January 1, 1975, all police officers in Winnipeg started to wear the same uniform with matching shoulder flashes that stated, "One, with the strength of many".

In the early 1990s, J.B. Dale Henry, a retired RCMP officer and former commander of the Manitoba "D" division, was selected as the first Chief of Police not from the service's own ranks. Henry was well respected amongst minorities and sought to change and improve the image of police in Winnipeg. One of the most noticeable changes was the name for police, from the Winnipeg Police Force (which it had been for 120 years), to the Winnipeg Police Service. Another change was the addition of the motto "Community Commitment".

Henry also changed the department badge to the one known today and pictured above. The 13 stars on the badge represent the 13 communities that came together to form Winnipeg during the amalgamation in the 1970s, and the crocus is the Provincial flower.

Administration

The Winnipeg Police Service is headed by Chief of Police Keith McCaskill as of December 10, 2007, who replaced retired Jack Ewatski. The two Deputy Chiefs are Menno Zacharias and Doug Webster.

The service has 1318 officers of which approximately half are on the front lines or known as, General Patrol (Uniform Operations). The WPS also has approximately 400 civilian workers.

Organization

The City of Winnipeg is divided into six policing districts. Each district contains several generalized and specialized police units.

Division 11 - Downtown - City Centre - Patrols Police District 1 - 151 Princess St. - 204-986-6288
Division 12 - West St. James / Assiniboia - Patrols Police District 2 - 210 Lyle St. - 204-986-6060
Division 13 - North Lord Selkirk / West Kildonan - Patrols Police District 3 - 260 Hartford Ave - 204-986-6313
Division 14 - East East Kildonan / Transcona Patrols Police District 4 - 730 Pandora Ave. W. - 204-986-6262
Division 15 - East St. Boniface / St. Vital - Patrols Police District 5 - 227 Provencher Blvd. - 204-986-6200
Division 16 - South Assiniboine Park / Fort Rouge / Fort Garry - Patrols Police District 6 - 1350 Pembina Hwy - 204-986-6042

Specialized units include:

*Bicycle Patrol Unit
*Canine Unit
*Traffic Unit
*Photo Enforcement Unit
*Pawn Unit
*River Patrol Unit
*Victim Services Unit
*Street Crime Unit
*Training Unit - WPS Training academy.
*Division 40 - Criminal Investigation Bureau - Homicide, Drugs, Hate Crimes, Major Crimes, Morals, Integrated Proceeds of Crime (IPOC), Organized Crime and Crime Stoppers
*Division 41 - Criminal Investigation Bureau - Missing Persons, Child Abuse, Internet Child Exploitation (ICE), Domestic Violence, High Risk Offenders, Sex Crimes, Vulnerable Persons, and Youth Crime
*Division 42 - Criminal Investigation Bureau – Arson, Commercial Crime, Stolen Auto, Pawn, Surveillance and Forensic Services

The Winnipeg Police Service has replaced it's old part-time Emergency Response Unit (ERU) with a new full-time Tactical Support Team (TST), made up of officers trained for special circumstances, such as hostage situations or armed and barricaded incidents.

Recruitment

Potential trainees must be at least eighteen years old and able to complete the Police Officer's Physical Aptitude Test, which determines a recruit's physical ability. Training takes 37 weeks and is free for the trainee. After passing the training course, recruits are assigned to Field Training Officers, who supervise them while they carry out needed services. After this process is finished the recruit is inducted into the police service. After five years of general patrol service, officers may apply for specialty divisions.

tatistics

As of 2006:
*Winnipeg Population - 648,600
*Police Per Residents - 1/499
*Operating Expenses - $134,318,216
*Per Capita Cost - $207.09-
*Total Incoming Phone Calls
**Emergency 9-1-1 Calls - 196,189
**Non-Emergency Calls - 366,484

*Busiest Day: Friday, June 30, 2006, with 2241 incoming calls
*Busiest Average Month: June
*Slowest Day: Monday, December 25, 2006, with 831 incoming calls
*Slowest Average Month: December-
*Top Five Events For Service
**Domestic Disturbance -16,639
**Traffic Stop - 15,180
**Disturbance - 8,933
**Traffic Complaint - 8,596
**Suspicious Person - 6,600-
*In 2006, 80 marijuana grow operations were dismantled by the WPS' "Green Team" with more than $253,000 in equipment, and over $14,000,000 in plants seized.
*The WPS Bomb Unit was deployed 42 times.
*The Crisis Negotiators Unit was activated 19 times.
*The Crown Management Unit attended three incidents.
*The Emergency Response Unit (ERU) was called out 15 times.
*The Underwater Search & Recovery Unit was deployed 19 times.

Winnipeg Police Museum

The "Winnipeg Police Museum" is a museum in Winnipeg. The museum displays the history of the Winnipeg Police Service from 1874 to the present. Pictures, equipment, vehicles and other artifacts are presented within the museum. An original 1911 jail cell from the "North End Station" is one of the highlights of the museum.

Controversies

Incidents involving Aboriginals

On March 9, 1988, Winnipeg Police Constable Robert Cross shot and killed Aboriginal leader J.J. Harper, having mistaken him for an auto theft suspect. [ [http://www.cbc.ca/manitoba/features/harper/ CBC News, "J.J. Harper: 15 Years Later", 2008.] ] Initially, this shooting was ruled as justified by the internal firearms board of enquiry. [ [http://www.ajic.mb.ca/volumelll/chapter6.html The Aboriginal Justice Implementation Commission, "The exoneration", 1991.] ] Subsequently, however, the shooting and other events led to the Aboriginal Justice Inquiry, a comprehensive investigation into the treatment of First Nations Peoples within the Manitoba justice system. In 1991, the inquiry concluded that the WPS internal investigation was faulty and intended more to exonerate Cross than to discover the truth. Furthermore, they ruled that Constable Cross had used excessive force and was therefore responsible for Harper's death. The report recommended that, in the future, officer-involved shootings be investigated by independent parties. [ [http://www.ajic.mb.ca/volumelll/chapter12.html The Aboriginal Justice Implementation Commission, "Conclusions", 1991.] ]

Recent cases

On January 31, 2005, 18-year-old Matthew Dumas was shot and killed by Constable Dennis Gbarek after Dumas confronted the officer with a screwdriver. At the time, Dumas was believed to be involved in a home invasion, though this was later determined to be false. [ [http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2008/06/09/dumas-inquest.html CBC News, "Inquest begins into police shooting of Winnipeg teen", 9 June 2008.] ] In June 2008, the the Manitoba government held an inquest into the Dumas death. At the inquest, lawyers for the Dumas family have argued that the shooting could have been avoided. [ [http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/canada/story/4189200p-4779780c.html Winnipeg Free Press, "Lawyer for Winnipeg victim's family says police shooting could have been avoided", 20 June 2008.] ] An investigator with the RCMP, however, testified that the shooting followed proper use of force guidelines. [ [http://www.canada.com/globaltv/winnipeg/story.html?id=a137140f-0b92-4f04-8a55-fb623ccf8a2f Winnipeg Free Press, "Use of force appropriate: Dumas Inquest", 19 June 2008.] ] As of July 2008, the inquest's report has not yet been released.

Two incidents in summer 2008 sparked further accusations of racism within the police service. In July, 17-year-old Michael Langan, a Métis, died after being tasered by police. Witnesses had reported a youth breaking into a vehicle, and police encountered Langan several blocks away, allegedly wielding a knife and refusing to surrender. David Chartrand, president of the Manitoba Metis Federation, suggested that racial profiling may have resulted in police using excessive force, an accusation that police chief Keith McCaskill denied. [CBC News. " [http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/07/24/taser-mother.html Winnipeg teen's death after zap from Taser 'tragic event:' police chief] ". 24 July 2008.] In August, Craig McDougall, a member of Garden Hill First Nation and nephew of J.J. Harper, was tasered then shot by police responding to a disturbance call in the city's West End. [CBC News. [http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/08/02/winnipeg-shot.html "Man shot to death after Taser fails, Winnipeg police say"] . 2 August 2008.] Police reported that McDougall was brandishing a knife, though family members have disputed that claim, saying McDougall was carrying a cellular phone. [Canadian Press. " [http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5ja0cvOWRZ6ZtbTXHQD8bTLqzcnrA Native leaders call for inquiry into Winnipeg police after fatal shooting] ". 5 August 2008.]

Other incidents

In February 2005, a truck driven by off-duty WPS Constable Derek Harvey-Zenk, reportedly drunkcite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2008/07/04/taman-inquiry.html |title=Paramedic, constable smelled alcohol on cop in deadly crash: inquiry |date=2008-07-04 |publisher=CBC News |accessdate=2008-08-21] after having attended an all-night drinking party,cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2008/07/16/mba-taman-inquiry.html |title=Police officers 'drank a lot' on night before fatal crash: former waitress |date=2008-07-17 |accessdate=2008-08-21 |publisher=CBC News] rear-ended and killed Crystal Taman, a 40-year-old mother of three, while she was stopped at a red light.cite news |url=http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/story/4213063p-4805812c.html |title=Taman inquiry a timeline |publisher=Winnipeg Free Press |date=2008-08-15 |accessdate=2008-08-21] The incident was initially investigated by East St. Paul police. Harvey-Zenk was originally charged with "impaired driving causing death" and numerous other charges. In July 2007, however, Harvey-Zenk was pled down to "dangerous driving causing death" (a lesser charge) and given a conditional sentence of "two years less a day", to be served at his home.cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2007/10/29/harveymordenzenk.html |title=No jail time for ex-cop who killed woman in car crash |date=2007-10-29 |publisher=CBC News |accessdate=2008-08-21]

Public outcry over the plea and allegations that the investigation had been botched led to a provincial inquiry, which began in June 2008.cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2007/10/30/sentence-r.html |publisher=CBC News |date=2007-10-30 |accessdate=2008-08-21 |title=Province calls inquiry into ex-cop's conviction in crash] cite web |url=http://www.tamaninquiry.ca/ |title=Taman Inquiry into the Investigation and Prosecution of Derek Harvey-Zenk |accessdate=2008-08-21] At the inquiry, multiple police officers testified that they did not notice Harvey-Zenk drinking, leading to allegations of a police cover-up.cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2008/07/18/taman-black.html |title=Cop tells Taman inquiry he was too busy to notice colleagues' drinking |date=2008-07-18 |accessdate=2008-08-21 |publisher=CBC News] Furthermore, a waitress who served the officers liquor throughout the evening testified that she was pressured to not "remember too much" by the restaurant's manager, who was "friends" with the officers. Officers involved in the investigation have denied they gave preferential treatment to Harvey-Zenk.cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2008/07/07/taman-inquiry.html |date=2008-07-07 |accessdate=2008-08-21 |title=No conspiracy to protect officer involved in fatal crash, inquiry told |publisher=CBC News]

Photos

References

* [http://winnipeg.ca/police/ Winnipeg Police Service]
* [http://www.ajic.mb.ca/ The Aboriginal Justice Implementation Commission]