Ex-chief outlines challenges

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/03/2012 (5188 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A former chief of the Winnipeg Police Service says the next top cop should focus on local neighbourhood policing as a way to clamp down on costs.

That strategy — or others — could be part of the race to see who will replace current Winnipeg Police Service Chief Keith McCaskill, who’s due to leave his role this December.

With yearly promotions and transfers at the WPS currently in full swing, all eyes are also on who will put his or her name forward to become the city’s next chief of police, one of the most high-profile roles in the city.

The search for the next chief will include both internal and external candidates, said Phil Sheegl, the city’s chief administrative officer.

Central to the process will be the development of a profile of the type of chief wanted.

“It all depends on the person that’s selected. Obviously, the head-hunting firm — whichever head-hunting firm is selected — and city council will get together and they’ll develop a profile they believe is important, and they should,” said Dave Cassels, who led the Winnipeg Police Service from 1996 to 1998, after serving as deputy chief for the Edmonton Police Service.

“They need to make it clear to the head-hunting firm… the type of person that they’re looking for. Do they want somebody who can bring down escalating police costs and has experience with that? Do they want someone who has experience with community policing and actually implementing it in a large urban area?

“Do they have someone that has a proven track record, that is strong at relationship-building, constant relationship-building, not just window dressing?” Cassels said.

Ever since McCaskill announced his impending departure, there’s been speculation on who will seek the role. The two next-highest-ranking officers, deputy chiefs Shelley Hart and Art Stannard, have both indicated they will not be going after the job.

The new chief may be stepping into tricky territory due to pending cuts that are part of a plan to save $1 million in operating costs this year.

The cost-saving includes a proposal to shut down two community service centres on Henderson Highway and St. Mary’s Road, a move Cassels laments as “regrettable.”

“You can bring down your escalating police costs, that is, all your police officers responding to calls for service, by having those local neighbourhood stations. They’ve worked successfully in many, many large municipalities,” Cassels said.

“Also facing the new chief will be efforts to shave the climbing annual budget of the police service, which makes up a quarter of the city’s annual operating budget.”

Cassels said there are innovative approaches for officers focused on “local neighbourhood policing and problem-solving.”

“The one thing that is becoming very important to municipalities, and I’m surprised it hasn’t taken longer for municipalities across the country to realize it, and that is the escalating police costs,” Cassels said.

“Escalating police costs… are a constant issue in municipal policing, and my feeling (is) it’s because of the way police officers are deployed. It’s very traditional — they’re in cars, responding to calls for service, conducting a brief investigation, applying law enforcement as the only tool that’s available to them and then feeding the criminal justice system.”

Jack Ewatski, who was Winnipeg Police Service chief from 1998 to 2007 and is now deputy commissioner at the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service, declined to comment for this article.

Dale Henry, a high-ranking Mountie who came out of retirement to take the role of Winnipeg’s police chief from 1992 to 1996, said the next WPS chief should be “progressive” and have a “sound knowledge of criminal law,” among other qualities.

“(He or she) should have an established record of honesty and integrity, good managerial and organizational skills and also be able to manage the stress of a high-profile position of responsibility and the relentless scrutiny it receives,” Henry said.

The chief’s role requires a lot of interaction with the public, he said.

“I felt… if you’re invited, you respond,” Henry said. “Unless there was some overwhelming reason why you couldn’t attend, I always made it a point of trying to attend.”

gabrielle.giroday@freepress.mb.ca

 

Shopping for a top cop

The list of contenders will likely be long, but here are some of the people cited as possibilities:

Supt. Devon Clunis

Clunis — who is currently superintendent of development support and a 25-year veteran of the force — is loved by the rank and file. Bolstering his name is his role as a Winnipeg Police Service chaplain since 1998. If he were chosen, he’d be the first visible minority chief in WPS history.

Former superintendent Gord Schumacher

Schumacher, the province’s current director of criminal property forfeiture, has a law degree and experience as a superintendent of the Winnipeg Police Service. The 30-year veteran of the WPS is considering applying for the job.

Former superintendent Corrine Scott

Widely rumoured within the police force as a candidate, Scott is one of the highest-ranking female officers in the history of the WPS. She recently left the force after 31 years to take an executive role with the Manitoba Liquor Control Commission. She has said she won’t apply for the chief’s job.