Around 20 people were spread through one of the upstairs conference rooms at the Stettler Recreation Centre on March 22.
They were there for an RCMP town hall meeting; one which had been called at the behest of Staff Sgt. Jon England, the interim-commanding officer of the Stettler RCMP detachment.
According to England, the goal of the session was to gather feedback from the community they serve as they look forward to the year ahead.
Having already completed sessions with county residents and elected officials of both the county and the town, the in-town forum was an opportunity for community residents to have their say and give feedback on policing priorities for 2023.
Joining England were Leduc-based RCMP Superintendent Pamela Robinson, Red Deer RCMP Staff Sgt. Scott Landry, and a member of the Stettler detachment.
To begin the session, England gave an overview of current staffing levels in the Stettler detachment, as well as the wide-variety of assistance the detachment has available to it from outside specialty units such as the Forensic Identification Unit, Major Crimes Unit, dog team and air services.
England noted that over the past year the crime severity index has dropped thanks to a decrease in severe crimes in the community, though it still sits above the provincial average.
During the presentation England commented that one of the top calls for service the Stettler RCMP receive are mental health related, and thanks to a couple of new initiatives officers are now able to handle those calls differently than in the past.
The first initiative discussed was a crisis-team pairing the detachment has access to, where an RCMP officer is dispatched to a mental health call with a specially trained psychiatric nurse.
“This collaborative approach has had success in bigger centres,” said Robinson.
Additionally, thanks to a new Health IM app, officers are able to access the health records of those with a mental health history, allowing them to review someone’s history before they ever get to the scene and be more prepared for what they may find.
With the changes that have been proposed to the Victim Services program due to take effect by 2024, one member of the audience asked how important it was for the RCMP to have that service to rely on.
England’s answer was to the point: “Very.”
“They take work off our hands. They are very important to us,” said England.
A couple other topics brought forward by those in attendance were crime prevention and citizens groups.
England noted that crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) can be a significant deterrent to property crime.
“Well-lit, cared-for property usually deters,” said England.
As for citizen groups, England notes that groups in operation became fragmented during the pandemic and that he is working on re-engaging with them.
Robinson also noted that to help with communicating with those groups, a new app called Rave has been created to allow RCMP officers to send out a message to those using it. The app can be used to inform citizen groups to be on the look out for a suspicious vehicle, or other similar situations; however, the app is a one-way communication tool.
Citizen groups reporting back need to contact the RCMP dispatch centre to get a hold of the appropriate officers.
A third app mentioned was the recently created RCMP app, which is available on both Android and Apple devices. The app can connect users to RCMP news, regional crime statistics, and includes the option of online reporting of non-urgent crime.
As for crime reporting, Robinson encourages all crime to be reported as it helps establish patterns and lets officers know where to patrol.
“No crime is to small to be reported,” Robinson said.
“We all want safe communities.”
To report a crime in Stettler, call 403-742-3381 for non-urgent matters 24-hours a day.
For emergencies, call 911.
