The Barriere RCMP Detachment submitted their 2017 Policing Activity Report to District of Barriere Mayor and Council Jan. 15.
Detachment NCO, Corporal Rob Welsman, wrote, “It is with great pleasure that I provide a summary of the Barriere RCMP’s policing activities and initiatives during the past year. This report will provide information with respect to both the Barriere RCMP’s entire policing area statistics, as well as statistics specific to the District of Barriere, as recorded on our policing database; the Police Records Information Management Environment (PRIME — BC).
Here is a summary of the report.”
General Barriere RCMP Call Volume Report:
During the year of 2017, Barriere RCMP responded to a total of 1535 calls for service within its entire policing area.
Of that number, 59 per cent of those calls (907 files) were for instances which occurred within the District of Barriere. This is similar to 2016, wherein Barriere RCMP responded to a total of 1481 calls for service with 61 per cent of those calls (900) originating within the District of Barriere.
Call volume for the Barriere RCMP has remained relatively constant over the past decade, with a low of 1299 calls in 2009 and a high of 1689 calls in 2014.
During 2017, the Barriere RCMP held 27 prisoners in custody in its secure facility, and laid approximately 53 charges (Criminal Code and serious motor vehicle charges). Thirty of those charges stemmed from incidents within the District of Barriere.
Comparisons in file count to similarly-sized, nearby detachments.
In addition to these file counts, additional files exist for assistance to other agencies, found/lost property, etc.
Barriere RCMP Youth and Community
Engagement Activities:
Since moving to my position as Detachment Commander both myself and members of my detachment have been pleased to take part in and/or organize a number of activities within the community and the schools.
Barriere members regular attend elementary school functions such as the Remembrance Day ceremony, hot lunches, and lockdown practice drills.
The detachment recently held a fraud awareness workshop for the community, as well as a drug awareness presentation in cooperation with the RCMP’s Strategic Prevention Services.
It was an honour to be invited by the Legion to take part in the 2017 Remembrance Day parade.
During the Barriere Fall Fair, Barriere Detachment scheduled additional officers and participated in the Fall Fair Parade. Police incidents during the Fair were minimal and no prisoners were held in custody during that period.
Barriere RCMP Detachment Priorities during the 2017 Fiscal Year:
1) Traffic — Enforcement
2) Police / Community Relations — Police Visibility
3) Domestic Violence
Traffic and police visibility priorities were identified by consultations with Mayor and Council, and the Simpcw Chief and Council.
This enforcement has been carried out by both speeding enforcement as well as proactive impaired driving roadblocks.
Barriere Detachment has greatly increased the number of impaired driving road checks conducted during the last six months and have been working in conjunction with the Clearwater Unit of the RCMP’s Central lnterior Traffic Services.
Domestic violence investigations were selected as one of the detachment priorities with a goal of ensuring that all domestic violence incidents are thoroughly investigated, documented, and that charges are brought forward to crown counsel wherever possible.
Barriere RCMP Human Resources Update
During 2017 there were significant staffing changes within Barriere Detachment.
Constable McGregor transferred out to a new detachment as part of the normal turnover process for Constables, and Corporal Mancini transferred out as the result of a promotion. Constable Camalush replaced Constable McGregor, and I assumed command of Barriere Detachment, arriving from Kamloops Detachment.
During 2018 there is one planned transfer, with Constable Reim leaving on an undetermined date as the result of his promotion. After his departure there will likely be a period of vacancy while suitable candidates are found for his replacement.
You may have noticed a decrease in the open hours of the detachment while our full time public servant is on temporary leave. Currently we have a temporary assistant attending to our front counter on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It is anticipated that we will be back to regular open office hours on March 5, 2018.
Also this year, the Barriere RCMP has requested one additional constable position be added to our detachment in order to bring the total number of constables to four, in addition to my position.
The purpose of that request is to expand the number of hours that an officer is on duty at any given time, improve response times, increase proactive enforcement and expand our prevention and education services. The result of this request is still pending.
The Corporal fished be writing, “It has been a pleasure to serve in my new role at the Barriere RCMP and I look forward to our future endeavors together.”
