Busy week for CPS reignites staffing level debate
Posted Mar 29, 2018 8:11 am.
Last Updated Mar 29, 2018 8:12 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
With a few high-profile incidents in Calgary over the last week, it has once again raised questions about policing levels.
According to Statistics Canada, Calgary has about 168 officers per 100,000 residents. That ratio is right in the middle of the big cities in Canada.
For comparison, Edmonton has 183 per 100,000 people, while Montreal leads the country with 228 per 100,000 people.
Mount Royal University Professor of Justice Studies Doug King said that’s one measure, but he believes the number of officers on the street is more important.
“Front line officers, detectives and those kinds of things, because police agencies are notoriously heavy in terms of administration and bureaucracy,” he said.
“There has been growing concern here in Calgary that the number of officers on the street hasn’t kept up with population growth and expansion of the size of the city,” King continued.
King added more officers on the street would help in Calgary.
“The Calgary Police Commission and the Calgary Police Service (CPS) have been pushing city council to approve more officers and it always gets into the politics and the debate,” he said.
Like most things in life, it also comes down to money, but King also said CPS is trying to re-deploy more resources to the front line.
“It always runs into debates within the public,” he explained. “So for example, when the Calgary Police Service decided they were going to shut down one of the community operated police stations to put those officers on the street, there was an uproar by members of city council and members of the community.”
It’s a balancing act and King said even the chief has admitted the force may be a little top heavy.
