Grade 11 Canadian Law

The Police

Services in Ontario

Contents

• Police Services Act• The RCMP• The OPP• Municipal Police• Aboriginal Police• Military Police

Police Services Act

• All police services in Ontario (except the RCMP) are governed by the Police Services Act (PSA)– It became law in 1990

• According to the PSA police services must include:– Crime prevention– Law enforcement– Assistance to victims of crime– Public order maintenance– Emergency response

• The PSA is also used when investigations of police conduct are warranted (i.e. the G20)

The RCMP

• The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is a national police force– It was formed in 1920 when the Dominion Police (1868) and

Royal Northwest Mounted Police (1873) merged– There are now almost 20,000 serving members

• They are primarily responsible for the enforcement of federal law across Canada

• They were also in charge of counter-terrorism and intelligence within Canada until CSIS was formed in 1984

The RCMP

• They have a huge mandate, including:– Commercial crime– Counterfeiting– Drug trafficking– Border services– Organized crime– Domestic security– VIP protection (Queen, GG, PM, politicians, visitors, etc…)– Co-operation with international police forces

The RCMP

• In all provinces except Ontario and Quebec they act as provincial police as well

• In Ontario they still operate in support of the OPP when requested and provide the following services:– Canadian Police Information Centre– Criminal Intelligence Service– Forensic Science and Identification Service– Canadian Firearms Program– Canadian Police College

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c5/Royal_Canadian_Mounted_Police.svg

The OPP

• In Ontario, most policing responsibility outside of major urban areas is the responsibility of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP)– Formed in 1909, it is now the 3rd-largest police force in Canada

after the RCMP and Toronto Police Services

• The OPP operates cars, trucks, boats, snowmobiles, helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft and has over 5,600 officers currently serving

• They do everything from highway safety to protection of the Ontario Legislature in Toronto

Municipal Police

• Municipal police services have jurisdiction in specific towns/cities and are funded by those municipalities– They are often supported by provincial forces or the RCMP

• Smaller areas without their own force rely on the OPP here in Ontario or the RCMP

• The Toronto Police Service is the 2nd-largest police organization in Canada with 5,800 members

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/18/Toronto_Police_Service_Logo.svg

Aboriginal Police

• The First Nations Policing Policy is administered by the Office of the Solicitor General– It allows individual First Nations communities to set up their

own independent police forces or place aboriginal contingents within an existing force

• In Ontario they are the First Nations Police, the closest unit being the Tyendinaga Mohawk Police in Shannonville

• The FNP have the powers of a regular police officer within the confines of the reserve

Military Police

• Military Police (MPs) have the power to arrest any military member for breaches of the Code of Service Discipline– They may then have a military summary trial or be court

martialled and sent to a military prison– They are also used overseas to detain potential war criminals

or enemy combatants

• They have the same powers as civilian police and can arrest anyone for Criminal Code violations on Canadian Forces property– However, if they arrest a civilian they must have a civilian trial

and be placed in civilian custody