OTTAWA (Reuters) - The head of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police on Monday said she would seek to equip officers with body-worn cameras to increase trust, accountability and transparency, according to a statement from a spokesman.
FILE PHOTO: Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rubs hand sanitiser on his hands, given to him by a protestor, while taking part in a rally against the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada June 5, 2020. REUTERS/Blair Gable
Earlier on Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he wanted police to wear body cameras to help overcome what he said was public distrust in the forces of law and order.
Protesters in Montreal and other Canadian cities took to the streets on Sunday in the latest international demonstrations against police brutality, sparked by the death of black man in Minnesota as a police offer knelt on his neck.
RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki has agreed to “engage in work and discussion... on a broader rollout of body-worn cameras” with the National Police Federation union, a statement from spokesman Dan Brien said.
“The commissioner agrees it is critically important for Canadians to feel protected by the police and is committed to take whatever steps are required to enhance trust between the RCMP and the communities we serve.”
“The use of body-worn cameras by RCMP officers was discussed as a means of ensuring accurate evidence gathering and accountability... (and) increased transparency,” the statement said.
Earlier on Monday, Trudeau said he had spoken to Lucki.
“One of the things we discussed was the adoption of body cameras. I’m committing to raising this with the provinces this week so we can move forward as quickly as possible,” Trudeau told a daily briefing. “Body cameras (are) a significant step towards transparency.”
The RCMP, which is a federal police force, also services eight of the 10 provinces. Ontario and Quebec, the two most populous provinces, have their own police.
“Many people in this country simply do not feel protected by the police. In fact, they’re afraid of them,” Trudeau said.
thinkaboutitthough on June 8th, 2020 at 20:06 UTC »
That won't do anything unless we redesign the CRCC at the same time. (The Civilian Review and Complaints Commission is the independent body tasked with reviewing Mounties' behaviour. It receives, on average, more than 2,000 complaints from the public every year)
You may be glad someone is watching these guys, but as it stands the CRCC has no power to compel the police to do anything. They can ask them for information, which the police can ignore, and they can make recommendations. That's the beginning and the end of it. Predictably such impotent "oversight" has accomplished very little.
In fact the RCMP have been stonewalling the CRCC so successfully they often can't even complete their reports and release their findings. In some cases they've blocked investigations this way for years.
That system needs a radical overhaul which leaves the CRCC (or some replacement for it) with the ability to legally compel police cooperation in investigations, compel the RCMP to punish or remove bad cops, compel VERIFIABLE CHANGE in police institutions and procedures when it's deemed necessary, provide continued monitoring for some period to verify compliance, and the ability to enforce penalties when noncompliance with that change is found. You'd think we probably need more than the current staff of 50 to effectively police the 70,000 police officers in this country too...
biteme20 on June 8th, 2020 at 19:28 UTC »
The police can just turn them off. Which seems to be a big problem in the states.
iyene on June 8th, 2020 at 18:27 UTC »
From article:
Trudeau, who last Friday attended a protest against police brutality, called for bold action to tackle systemic discrimination and racism against black Canadians and indigenous Canadians.
Trudeau said he had spoken earlier in the day to Brenda Lucki, head of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
“One of the things we discussed was the adoption of body cameras. I’m committing to raising this with the provinces this week so we can move forward as quickly as possible,” Trudeau told a daily briefing. “Body cameras (are) a significant step towards transparency.”