Increased sheriff pilot program comes to an end in Calgary – for now
A dozen sheriffs and Calgary Police officers roamed Calgary's core for three months, but the provincial pilot program is officially over as of this week.
However, a spokesperson for the Alberta government says the UCP campaigned on extending the program until the end of the year and the Calgary Police Service is reviewing the project before the sheriffs are redeployed.
Back in February, the province tasked 12 sheriffs to walk side-by-side with CPS officers to try and bolster public safety and combat crime.
A decision on whether to bring the program back permanently will be up to the newly re-elected government and the public safety minister named by Premier Danielle Smith.
"Anecdotally, talking to the members involved on both our side, the CPS side and the sheriff side, we appreciated the increase in capacity and being able to go a little bit further," said Calgary police chief Mark Neufeld.
"And, anecdotally, I think Calgarians were happy seeing more uniforms and public spaces," he told journalists Wednesday morning, adding he thanked the sheriffs for their help earlier in the week.
Final data for the entirety of the pilot is expected next week, but numbers released at the end of April showed the teams responded to more than 1,600 calls and laid 109 charges.
The sheriff-police partnership was dispatched throughout Calgary's downtown core, but much of that included time spent near transit stations.
"Alberta’s government remains committed to ensuring that our police services have the resources they need to keep our streets safe," reads a statement from a provincial spokesperson.
Edmonton has a similar pilot project with additional sheriffs and that city's police service.
"There's a number of things that I think if it were to continue in the short-term, may create some other pressures that would actually not be helpful for us," Neufeld said, pointing to the need for sheriffs elsewhere, including along Alberta highways and in transporting people in custody.
"So I would want to look and see what does that look like and what else would be impacted if we were to do that?"
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
LIVE @ 1:15 PT B.C. premier to give announcement related to public drug use
B.C.'s premier is scheduled to give an update Friday about public drug use in the province.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
AFN chief says Air Canada offered a 15% discount after her headdress was mishandled
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief complained to Air Canada about how staffers treated her and her ceremonial headdress on a flight this week, she says the airline responded by offering a 15 per cent discount on her next flight.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
DEVELOPING Bird flu outbreaks: WHO weighs in on public health risk
The current overall public health risk posed by the H5N1 bird flu virus is low, the World Health Organization said on Friday, but urged countries to stay alert for cases of animal-to-human transmission.
Island near Mull of Kintyre for sale for US$3.1 million
An idyllic 453-acre private island is up for sale off the west coast of Scotland and it comes with sandy beaches, puffins galore, seven houses, a pub, a helipad and a flock of black-faced sheep.