Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Since 2009, Montreal has seen a proliferation of what are known as “mixed squads,” which generally involve a police officer working alongside a social worker or health worker to respond to situations in public spaces. Some experts and police say these squads can help leave repression behind to provide support to marginalized people. But what happens when we pay attention to the perspectives of those who work on the frontlines with unhoused people? Listening to these perspectives and bringing them into the public debate is the aim of a new report on mixed squads in Montreal. We contributed to the research. The perspectives of frontline workers couldn’t be clearer: far from being a form of support, mixed squads have further harmed unhoused people ... CLICK HERE for the full story

BC GOV NEWS: A death review panel examining the deaths of people who died during or within 24 hours following contact with police in BC says police are a de facto part of the mental health system and that the role of policing should be incorporated into the provincial mental health strategy, highlighting that more assessment and training opportunities exist. In the report “Opportunities for Different Outcomes – Police: A crucial component of BC’s mental health system,” three promising areas to reduce deaths and improve public safety were identified: Improve co-ordination between health services and police who encounter persons experiencing a mental health crisis; Increase access to mental health assessment, and improve referrals to services for persons experiencing other life stressors; and Utilize findings from police encounters with the public to inform ongoing police professional development. This review of 127 deaths ...

Police in Canada can now demand breath samples in bars and at home! You may have seen the above headline in your social media feed the past few days, and I wanted to provide some clarification around this legislation update. To begin – Police are not going to randomly walk into homes or restaurants to conduct breath tests. The title, and stories, basically make it sound like police will be randomly walking into bars and homes to demand a sample of your breath, and lay charges if you fail. The wording is designed to be sensational and make it sound like we have sweeping new powers; the fact is we can’t and don’t want to just walk into your home to test you for alcohol for no reason . Most people are surprised to know that we could always investigate you for impaired driving if we found you sitting at a bar, or at home, after driving. What is important to note is that we can’t just do a random check, without having evidence, that you were recently opera...