East St. Paul protests
Posted By Paul Turenne, Sun Media
Posted 1 year ago
WINNIPEG — East St. Paul’s municipal government fears losing control of its police force will result in poorer service to its citizens, but their message has not persuaded Manitoba’s justice minister to reinstate the small town force.
Justice Minister Dave Chomiak announced Monday he was disbanding the East St. Paul Police Service in favour of the RCMP.
Chomiak made the call in response to the report of the Taman Inquiry, which was highly critical of the East St. Paul force, its training standards, and its handling of the 2005 crash that killed Crystal Taman on the outskirts of the community.
Several members of the municipality’s council met with Chomiak at the Legislature yesterday afternoon in an effort to get the decision reversed, but Chomiak said he has had no second thoughts and is proceeding with a plan to have the Mounties patrolling the community by year’s end.
“He’s not prepared to change that decision and we’re not prepared to accept that position, so we’re at a stalemate,” said Michael Wasylin, deputy mayor of East St. Paul.
Mayor Lawrence Morris said a campaign will begin in the municipality to inform citizens about the change and gauge their feelings, while a town hall meeting will likely take place next week.
“We’ve been bombarded by residents who have overwhelmingly stated they prefer to keep the East St. Paul police force intact,” he said.
Morris said he believes East St. Paul is unfairly bearing the brunt of the Taman report’s fallout.
Premier Gary Doer said yesterday he agreed with Chomiak’s decision.
“The judge said the East St. Paul people deserved better and they’re going to get better,” Doer told reporters. “I support the decision.”
Wasylin said the main concern about the switch is maintaining service, as East St. Paul’s officers only patrolled within the municipality. He worried Mounties could be pulled away to deal with calls elsewhere.
“This is not a power struggle between the province and the Rural Municipality of East St. Paul,” Wasylin said. “Ultimately, this is what it’s all about: maintaining the level of service.
“We don’t have assurances of anything at this point.”
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