Special constables may need more weapons to deal with violence in Metro, union says

The union representing special constables who patrol Montreal's Metro network says it may be time for its members to be armed with guns and stun guns.

In a statement issued Tuesday evening, the Fraternité des constables et agents de la paix de la STM (FCAP) said its members have been dealing with an increase in violence recently which have put them "under constant pressure."

The union, which is affiliated with the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN), says the dangers of encounters in the Metro network are exacerbated by constables' lack of equipment and information.

The union it says it hired a public security expert to weigh in on the issue.

According to the FCAP, the expert, retired Sûreté du Québec officer Mario Benriqué, submitted a preliminary report that includes recommendations to arm special constables with guns and stun guns. He also recommends they be given access to the Centre de renseignements policiers du Québec (CRPQ), a confidential police database.

The union stresses that it doesn't yet have an official position on the matter and that it needs to consult its 160 members or so to see what they think of the expert's recommendations. And if they are eventually implemented, the union says it won't happen quickly.

In a scrum Wednesday afternoon, Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante said the city's police service has already increased its presence at a number of Metro stations and that the STM had also increased the number of its special constables patrolling Metro platforms.

"It's for [the STM] to make the decision, but I don't think we're there," Plante said. "[The constables] already have tools; I don't think that having a gun is where we should be going."

From inspectors to special constables

Prior to 2021, the employees who patrolled the STM network were known as inspectors.

The special constable status came with more powers, like arresting someone for an offence on the transit network and delivering them to police.

Last year, special constables began using cayenne pepper gel — a thicker, more targeted alternative to pepper spray. This was on top of the batons they already carried.

At the time, Montreal's transit authority, the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), said the pepper gel was a "de-escalation tool" for "exceptional circumstances," but it sparked concerns among advocates for people experiencing homelessness.

Kevin Grenier, the president of the FCAP, says special constables are projected to record 55,000 interventions this year, an average of 150 per day.

He points to recent incidents like a fatal stabbing at the Guy-Concordia station as proof that the Metro network is getting more dangerous for users and his members. 

He says both the victim and the accused were known to police and access to the police database could have come in handy.

"Around that time, we also had three interventions in the Metro tunnel with people who were armed and experiencing mental health crises," Grenier said, specifying that some of the agents sustained injuries during those encounters.

"The last one, once we neutralized them, we realized that it was an air gun."

In 2021, when agents patrolling the transit network were given new powers, the STM emphasized that "at no time will inspectors be equipped with firearms."

It doubled down on that commitment in a statement it issued on Wednesday.

"There are no plans to arm special constables," the transit authority said.

"We're aware that a difficult social context has made their work more challenging. But we still favour a de-escalation approach during more complex interventions with an aggressive person."

According to the STM's statement, special constables have used the pepper gel seven times since it became available to them. The STM also reiterated that agents need to reach out to the SPVM for situations involving a person who is armed.