Hamilton's new police chief on marijuana, carding, misconduct
Watch highlights from CBC Hamilton's Q&A with newly appointed Hamilton Police Chief Eric Girt
Hamilton's newly appointed police chief, Eric Girt, is taking over one of the biggest police forces in Ontario at a time when the whole law governing their work — the provincial Police Services Act — is being rewritten.
The service has multiple officers embroiled in misconduct cases. Officer morale was judged by a survey to be low. A meeting at city hall last fall revealed fractured relationships with Hamilton's diverse communities over the practice of street checks or carding.
Girt agreed to a one-on-one interview with CBC Hamilton about the opportunities and challenges he faces in taking over the force.
Girt became deputy chief in 2006 after 20 years before that with the service.
He grew up in Hamilton and said the city's "rejuvenation" is a priority for him, for police to help people feel safe and eager to invest and develop the city.
What keeps him up at night? Missing persons cases, especially in cases of mental illness.
Here are some highlights of his interview with CBC Hamilton's Kelly Bennett.
Girt on being called a 'softer' chief than his predecessor
"We took seriously the association survey when they said that morale is low," Ferguson said.
Girt on Canada's changing marijuana laws
Girt offered what he thinks the service should do in the transition between federal promises to legalize marijuana, and the laws as they're written.
Girt on policing in a diverse city
Ferguson said then that criticism about the street checks/carding practice, among other allegations of racial insensitivity, had given him pause.
"Have we got work to do? Absolutely," he said last fall. "Particularly around this whole racial thing. I think we need to work harder at that. You know, I need to work harder at that, as does the entire board, as does the entire service. Because even if it's just a perception, we've got to put a better message out there."
In his interview with CBC Hamilton, Girt reiterated a point he made the day he was sworn in, that a priority for him is educating newcomer communities about how policing works in Canada.
Girt on distrust over carding/street checks
Police in Hamilton had been saying for years that they don't keep race-based statistics. Keeping that data would mean the cops could provide the kind of breakdown that has led to criticisms in Toronto, Kingston and Ottawa.
But Girt, as deputy chief, revealed in a presentation that the service was in fact able to do a racial analysis of the practice because the service had been collecting those identifiers.
That led to distrust from the community of advocates who had called for an end to the practice. Kayonne Christy, a co-organizer of the initial "Black, Brown, Red Lives Matter" march that called for an end to carding, said in a community forum last fall that the police service had lied to her.
CBC Hamilton asked Girt how he would've handled the communication if he'd been chief.
- READ MORE: Carding in Hamilton: 5 things we learned
- READ MORE: Police street stops: Making the case for keeping race data
Girt on officer misconduct and the service's response
For that story, CBC Hamilton sent a list of specific questions to Hamilton Police. In response, the police service said in a statement that they are bound by secrecy in the police complaint process and would not comment about the case.
We asked Girt if there was something he would like to say generally about what happens in cases where someone makes allegations against an officer that are substantiated.
- READ MORE: Sex, drugs scandal casts shadow on prominent cop, notorious temple arson
- READ MORE: Police meet with Hindu temple leaders after sex scandal breaks
Have a question you think we should have asked? Or a tip about a police-related story in Hamilton? Email kelly.bennett@cbc.ca.