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2005 ewpoerts on Saskatoon Police
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Police and the sting scandal | Abdulahi
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| Tasering Randy Fryingpan | Edmonton
police on U.S. State Department Bad Cop list for violating human
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Sabo | Dueck
| Larry
Lockwood | Mayor Don
Atchison secretive about Dueck complaint | Stan
Goertzen | Wiks hearing: Sabo complaint
raised by Wiks lawyer clearly intended to sidetrack the hearing
of discreditable conduct | Milgaard
inguiry reveals police manufactured Milgaard theory based on
forged testimony: That was 36 years ago and they have not been
stopped from doing it 2005: Pilot
project targetting west side | Saskatchewan
Police complaints |
Deputy
Chief Wiks gets a tap on the knuckles for lying to the media
Stonechild public
forum lightly attended
Darren Bernhardt, The
StarPhoenix, Wednesday, September 28, 2005
A one-time forum to solicit
public response on how to improve relations between the community
and the Saskatoon police force in the aftermath of the Neil Stonechild
inquiry attracted a thin crowd Tuesday night.
The newly created committee
on strategic renewal, a sub-committee of the board of police
commissioners, held the forum at the Centennial Auditorium to
seek feedback on the recommendations for change that came out
of the Stonechild inquiry report.
The report and recommendations
focus on two main areas: enhancing race relations and improving
the police complaints process.
"A reputation can be built
over a career but destroyed in an hour. It will take a lot to
demonstrate a willingness to work together but that's what we're
trying to do," said police Chief Russ Sabo.
In September 2003, the inquiry
into the freezing death of Stonechild, 17, began. Two Saskatoon
police constables were suspended from duty and later fired after
Justice David Wright, the inquiry's commissioner, found they
had Stonechild in their custody on the night he was last seen
alive.
It was the second time Saskatoon
police were implicated in such a case. Two other constables were
fired in 2001 after they were convicted of unlawful confinement
for abandoning an intoxicated aboriginal man on the outskirts
of the city in 2000.
"What brought this (report)
to a head was devastating to our police service. Hopefully this
will establish confidence that we are doing things to improve,"
said Sabo.
The committee on strategic
renewal considers the recommendations to be a draft at this point,
said Mayor Don Atchison, chair of the police commission.
Rather than a formal presentation
with a question-and-answer period at the end, the committee set
up display boards on easels around the room. The boards contained
a summary of Wright's report, while the complete package was
also available.
People were encouraged to walk
around between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. and speak to committee on strategic
renewal members, police commissioners, Atchison, Sabo and Saskatoon
Tribal Council Chief Glenn Johnstone. Each display board had
at least one person from those groups ready to discuss the issue.
If people preferred, they could
fill out a comment form at a table with a dozen spots to sit.
By 8 p.m., the table looked as though no one had been there,
although a box did contain a handful of completed sheets.
Atchison said he wasn't concerned
"one bit" by the fact only about 20 people filled the
room at any one time -- about 15 of them being organizers.
"There are people coming
and going all the time," he said, standing by an easel outlining
a proposed new complaints process that would put the provincial
minister of justice in charge.
"That's why we decided
to have the forum in this format. It's designed for people to
take in at their convenience and to focus on the issues that
concern them most. We know not everyone could be here for 7 p.m.
if we were to hold a presentation. And we know not everyone could
have stayed until 9 p.m."
The committee on strategic
renewal will also meet with the tribal council and Federation
of Saskatchewan Indian Nations to get more feedback, but Tuesday
night was the only public forum.
"The reason is time,"
explained Atchison. "We could run this forever and never
get to a point where everyone agrees. But we intend to implement
something as soon as possible."
In fact, some of the recommendations
have been acted on, he noted. The police service hired two aboriginal
liaison officers even before the report came out suggesting it.
"We're serious about this,"
said Atchison, promising to do what he can while pushing for
those things not in his control.
"We can't tell the justice
minister what to do but we can suggest it because we feel we
have pretty good reasons. How would you feel if you had a complaint
about the police that you had to make to the police? Well, that's
the way it is right now.
"We want people to feel
comfortable. There needs to be trust."
One man, who only provided
his first name, Dave, said the report is lacking in some areas.
It seems to point to the police as being solely responsible for
making communities safe, yet there are many other organizations
involved.
Pinning it all on the police
is unfair, he said.
After all of the stakeholder
groups have had input, the revised recommendations will go to
the Saskatchewan Police Commission and then the justice minister
before going back to the board of police commissioners.
© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2005
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