Moose Jaw Board of Police Commissioners Notes

The next Board of Police Commissioners meeting is Thursday, June 8, at 7 p.m. in the Moose Jaw Public Library south meeting room. The public is welcome to attend.

Many calls to police are because residents are lonely, depressed, fearful

While the United States surgeon general recently declared loneliness an epidemic, the Moose Jaw Police Service has been dealing with that issue for years and directing people to appropriate support.

The first four months of 2023 have been busy for the organization (MJPS) as it has received 5,976 calls for service, compared to 5,362 calls last year during the same period and 4,618 queries two years ago, new data shows. This has translated into a year-over-year increase of 11.5 per cent.

During a media scrum after the recent Board of Police Commissioners’ meeting, chairwoman Mary Lee Booth pointed out that service-call increases in 2022 ranged from 19 per cent to 30 per cent by the end of the year. However, cops are now facing an 11.5-per-cent increase year-to-date on top of last year’s queries.

“So if you look at the numbers of calls for services

Jason G. Antonio - Moose Jaw Express

now compared to pre-pandemic, it’s quite a bit higher.

And I think that’s another indication of the social unrest and economic situation following this pandemic,” she said, noting addiction, mental illness, and housing are piled on top of those problems.

“People call the police because (they) really are the (ones) available 24/7,” Booth added.

That is true, especially since society has experienced a major period of increased stress and anxiety, which exhibit themselves through irregular behaviours and increased fear, Police Chief Rick Bourassa said.

“People are nervous, are afraid and are looking for reassurance and for some support and help. And we will continue to provide that as we move forward,” he continued.

“I can’t predict the future. I’m not sure how our societal interactions will continue, but this has been seen all over the place (through) changes in civility and how people interact with each other. And there seems to be more aggression.”

The chief noted that 25 per cent of all calls are for crimes, while 75 per cent are for non-crime matters — such as people who are depressed or need an outlet to vent their frustration.

The MJPS has dealt with lonely and depressed people for many years, including isolated individuals who need someone to talk to — which is why they call the police for non-emergencies, Bourassa said.

“And we’ve been doing that for as long as I’ve been around — connecting with (lonely) people (and) connecting them with resources that help them,” he added. “But loneliness is a big issue, it really is.”

Cops seeing big increases in offences related to people, property, drugs

The Moose Jaw Police Service has seen double-digit percentage increases in crimes against people and property this year, while officers have also responded to more calls than last year.

From January to April, the agency saw increases of 17.6 per cent in crimes against people, 13.2 per cent in crimes against property and 11.5 per cent in service calls compared to last year, recent crime statistics show.

Crimes against people

Data for crimes against people for 2023, 2022 and 2021 showed:

Homicide: 0 / 1 / 0

Attempted murder: 1 / 0 / 1

Assaults (sexual, common, with weapons/cause bodily harm, aggravated, against police): 132 / 115 / 84

Robbery: 2 / 6 / 0

Total: 187 / 159 / 118

Crimes against property

Data for crimes against property for 2023, 2022 and 2021 showed:

Break-ins (business, residence, other): 76 / 68 / 103

Theft of motor vehicle: 13 / 19 / 16

Theft over $5,000: 13 / 5 / 6

Theft under $5,000: 268 / 219 / 171

Arson: 0 / 5 / 5

Mischief/property damage: 80 / 72 / 93

Total: 585 / 517 / 533

The Moose Jaw Police Service (MJPS) is monitoring the increases in people-related crimes and deploying its resources accordingly, Chief Rick Bourassa said during the recent Board of Police Commissioners’ meeting.

Meanwhile, the “other” category of break-ins has jumped 127.3 per cent year-over-year — 25 incidents this year versus 11 last year — because criminals are breaking into sheds, outbuildings and other structures not attached to homes or businesses and stealing tools, he continued.

Police continue to investigate these incidents and have laid numerous charges against people, Bourassa added.

Other crimes

Data for other crimes for 2023, 2022 and 2021 showed:

Impaired driving: 30 / 38 / 31

Failing to comply with court orders: 127 / 309 / 232

Threats: 15 / 28 / 16

Domestic disputes: 19 / 24 / 55

Vehicle collisions over $1,000: 60 / 101 / 70

Summary offence tickets: 645 / 492 / 684

Drugs (cocaine, marijuana, meth, other CDSA drugs): 15 / 11 / 21

Also, there have been 5,976 calls for service year-todate (YTD), compared to 5,362 calls YTD in 2022 and 4,618 queries YTD in 2021.

Moose Jaw is not unique with property crime increases since it’s happening across Canada, said Bourassa.

“With the pandemic, things shifted slightly and there was a real drop in property crimes because people were at home and things weren’t happening,” he continued. “As things began to open up, we saw an increase … .”

There have been 10 incidents YTD for other CDSA drug offences compared to three offences YTD last year, a 233.3-per-cent increase, Bourassa said. While that looks “really, really nasty,” officers’ enforcement activities have driven those numbers.

Supt. Taylor Mickleborough confirmed that police continue to monitor drugs — mainly fentanyl and meth — while the numbers are due to successful investigative projects and police following up on leads.

While there has been an 11.5-per-cent increase in service calls year-over-year, residents should still call the cops so they can help resolve issues before they grow worse, said Bourassa.

When asked whether some calls are for “frivolous” issues, the chief confirmed the MJPS receives those types of queries. However, the in-house communications officers handle those obnoxious calls since most don’t require police.

Those calls are similar to what the mayor’s office re-