The process to eventually see more civilian members of the Board of Police Commissioners in Regina got started Monday night.
Regina City Council passed a motion that will see a report completed by administration that will return to council in the second quarter of 2020.
When asked about holding police offices accountable Mayor Michael Fougere said the Board of Police Commissioners is a policy board, so therefore they cannot question the actions of a specific officer.
“By the Police Act, and by the regulations related to the police service, we cannot ask questions about an individual police officer because it’s reviewed the public complaints commission,” Fougere said. “It could be a civil matter before the courts, so we can’t do that.”
Fougere was also asked about the appreciation letters portion of Bopard of Police Commissioners meetings. He said those letters are not meant for Regina Police to applaud themselves.
“Saskatoon does the same thing; this is meant to talk about interaction between the police service and the public,” Fougere said. “The generation of the information comes not from the police service, it comes from the public, so it’s just good to know that, it’s for information.
We don’t go into details about that.”
Fougere said the current Board of Police Commissioners in Regina is respected across the country.
“When I go across the country, and when members of council who are on the commission go to other police board meetings, police board governance it’s called, we’re looked upon as a great example of transparency and accountability,” Fougere said. “The mechanism could be different; yes, more citizens (could be added), I don’t doubt that at all, but in general terms we work very well, and we’re noted for that around the country.”
During the meeting, it was revealed that Regina is one of the last major Canadian cities to have more elected officials than civilian members of the Board of Police Commissioners. Currently there are three elected officials, including Fougere, with just two civilian members.