Police chief and board react to calls to dissolve TBPS
THUNDER BAY — Police Chief Darcy Fleury says the service has been doing quality work after Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler and others called for the disbandment of Thunder Bay Police and its governing board on Monday at Queen's Park.
"We've worked really, really hard at being transparent, having solid communications with all of our people in this community," he said in an interview after Tuesday's police services board meeting.
"I've seen some really good quality work being done in our office at every level and the response times and response that our officers are giving is top notch.
"We just need to really communicate that and let everybody understand that we're doing the best we can to ensure that everybody is being protected and getting the services that they need."
Fleury said he couldn't comment on the Corey Belesky case, adding that he and the service are "in kind of in a bad spot right now" as it is still an ongoing investigation.
He did note that officers have met with family members of Mackenzie Moonias regarding the case.
"We have met before with the family and discussed where we are with that situation.
"And how things went . . . initially when she went missing, up until the part where we started investigating the circumstances around her death."
Fleury couldn't speak to the death of Jenna Ostberg as the SIU is still investigating.
While the families are pushing for justice and closure, Fleury said he's reviewed officers' findings in these cases.
"I have gone through briefings with the officers to see where we are, and I'm satisfied that they've done a really good job. I think we can answer those questions when the time is right."
On Monday, NAN Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler called the police service a "cold case factory." Fleury was asked if he accepted these comments and allegations that police haven't done right by the victims.
"I looked at what his comments were, it was a bit of dramatization yesterday as far as I could see. The reality of it is any organization across the country has cold case files," said Fleury.
He stated that can happen with any case.
"You take the leads that you have, you take the tips that you have, you take the information that you have and investigate that. At certain points, sometimes those [leads] kind of dry up, and they go cold for a bit."
Fleury said the service is working towards building trust with the community, and he believes good work is being done with new engagement committees that have been started.
He listed off some of the work, including continuing outreach to the community and receiving their feedback.
"We've set up our Indigenous Advisory Committee, we have an Elders committee, and we're working towards a diversity committee.
"We just need to keep that going and really continue to bring those people to the table so we can further discuss what we need to do."
Karen Machado, chair of the police services board, said they do not plan to disband the city's police service, as it is not up to the police board to make that decision.
"We're all committed to the work that's ahead of us, and we want to, and we're going to continue on that work again," Machado said.
"It would be my understanding that the inspector general can make that determination, and it is in the complaint that his office has received, and he will be reviewing it."
Although she admitted she wasn't an expert on the subject, Machado did discuss the impact that disbanding the police service and its board would have on the community.
"It would have a large impact because then they would have to look at how and who is replacing the service. They would have to appoint new board members, both the city and the province.
"There are associations that would have to establish processes through the collective agreements that they have. They would have to look at severing employment, severing contracts."
In terms of building back community trust, Machado said it will take time.
"You can't hold people accountable without a policy and a procedure, right? Because that's the standard then to which they're held . . . and we've established a lot thus far in the short duration.
"I've said from the very beginning that this is going to take time. The work we have to do and the building back of trust, it doesn't just happen, it's also actions. So policies, we can develop them all, but we need to be accountable."
Katie Nicholls, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TBnewswatch.com
