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WINNIPEG – The Manitoba government says it will provide permanent funding for 12 new Winnipeg police officers as part of its public safety strategy.

The government previously funded those officers under its temporary Retail Crime Initiative, but it is expected to continue to address a rise in retail theft and violent crime in some parts of the provincial capital.

Justice Minister Matt Wiebe told reporters Thursday that the new officers will continue working with community members and businesses.

“These folks understand that if you can get in, speak with business owners, with customers, with people, make your presence felt, you’re going to have a better, higher impact,” he said.

The province allocated $1.1 million in July to pay for police to work overtime in hot spots in Winnipeg such as retail stores and malls.

The change is one of a number of initiatives Wiebe announced to combat crime provincewide.

The Retail Council of Canada originally teamed up with Winnipeg police on the initiative, which they have called successful.

The organization said it is pleased the government is focusing on stopping retail theft, but is advocating for the development of a specialized unit.

“To ensure these resources remain focused on retail crime versus being eventually pulled into other commitments, we will be encouraging the formation of a (Winnipeg Police Service) retail crime unit where at least some of these new officers could be assigned,” John Graham, director of government relations for the Prairie region said in an email.

The province has also announced a two-per-cent increase in funding for municipal law enforcement and an expansion of the electronic monitoring program outside Winnipeg.

The government also plans to strengthen impaired driving legislation and hire 100 mental-health workers to work alongside first responders, a promise the NDP campaigned on during last year’s election.

Wiebe said the government consulted with community groups, social service agencies, law enforcement agencies and Indigenous organizations in the development of the province’s strategy.

“This is an all-hands-on-deck approach to make our province safer.”

The Opposition Progressive Conservatives said the strategy is Winnipeg-centric, has no timelines and includes many previously announced initiatives.

“It shows that there’s no plan by the NDP at this point. It’s Band Aids and buzzwords,” said Tory justice critic Wayne Balcaen.

The government is also planning a summit to hear from youth on solutions to address the causes of crime.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

CHARLOTTETOWN – Prince Edward Island’s health authority is asking for the public’s help in finding a some paper health records that were “carried off by strong winds.”

Health P.E.I. says a small number of inactive records were blown away yesterday in Charlottetown.

A news release says they may contain limited information about people who are now deceased.

A spokesperson for the health authority says the records were being transferred at the time they were lost.

The release says staff were able to retrieve most of the documents, but some blew away.

Anyone who finds the paperwork is asked to return it to the Health P.E.I.’s Charlottetown offices.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

OTTAWA – The RCMP is rolling out body-worn cameras for officers, deploying more than 10,000 cameras across the country in the next 12 to 18 months.

Officers will be expected to turn on their cameras when they answer calls or interact with the public. They will wear the cameras on their chests and they will flash red lights to indicate they are recording.

“The muscle memory that we’re training officers to build in is essentially seatbelt off, camera on,” said Taunya Goguen, the RCMP’s corporate management officer, at a press briefing Thursday.

The RCMP began field-testing cameras last year and the national rollout will begin on Nov. 18.

The RCMP says the cameras serve as an objective record of how officers interact with the community.

Goguen said the force expects the cameras to lead to “greater accountability and public trust, better interactions between the police and the public, improved evidence-gathering and quick resolution to public complaints.”

The cameras won’t be worn for surveillance or for 24-hour recordings, or used in settings with a high expectation of privacy, such as washrooms or hospitals. They also won’t record during strip or body cavity searches, according to the RCMP.

Trenton Entwistle, the program manager for the camera program, said video from the cameras won’t be used for facial recognition “at any time.”

The videos can’t be edited, and officers can’t delete their own videos. The length of time each video is retained will vary from 30 days to more than two years, depending on the type of incident, the RCMP outlined.

The Liberal government has allocated $238.5 million over six years and $50 million in ongoing funding for the cameras.

It first pledged the money in 2020, following the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer, which set off mass demonstrations against systemic racism and police brutality across the U.S.

Goguen noted the program came “in response to concerns raised by racialized communities and (is) meant to address systemic racism.”

She said the initiative “will be important for the police and communities to increase transparency, providing information about what occurs during those interactions.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.