More police needed to fight more gun and drug-related crimes, says RNCA
Association says while crime is increasing, the number of RNC officers is dropping
The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary Association says the provincial government must recruit and retain more officers to protect public safety, as the rate of crime in the province continues to grow.
In late July, Statistic Canada released incident-based crime statistics for 2020 to 2024. The federal agency reported the crime rate in Newfoundland and Labrador increased by 5 per cent in 2024, compared to 2023.
The RNCA — which represents the 380 non-commissioned ranks of the province's police force — says that during that same period the number of police officers fighting crime in the province had fallen, with more than 15 officers leaving to work for other police forces or private industry.
"We're losing a lot of experience, you know, when you are talking about members with anywhere like six plus years in the job," said RNCA president Mike Summers, an RNC staff sergeant.
Summers said losing mid-career officers means the more than 370 police officers still in the force are left with growing workloads. He said the types of crimes they are dealing with are changing, too.
"We are getting more gun calls. We're seeing more serious crimes like home invasions, serious assaults, the drug issue is certainly big here in the province now," he said.
He's calling on the province to help the force retain the officers it has, and find more than 90 new ones.
"We would love to have the officers out there to keep the communities that we police safe," said Summers.
He said the province has fallen below the national average of 178 police officers per 100,000 residents, and the RNC would need to have about 460 officers to meet it.
Justice Minister says more officers coming
Justice and Public Safety Minister John Haggie met with the RNCA this week.
At a briefing about wildfires in the province Wednesday, he said about 20 new recruits are joining the RNC this fall and another 20 are expected next year.
Haggie also said the province will work with the RNC and the RNCA to find ways to retain mid-career officers.
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