Drumheller Staff Sergeant Robert Harms was one of four RCMP members who met with Kneehill County council at the Tuesday, March 12, Committee of the Whole Meeting.
The Three Hills, Olds, Beiseker and Drumheller detachments gave a presentation to council members about the impact recent policing has had on the communities involved.
Through Town Hall Meetings and online surveys, RCMP have been able to piece together important information from residents about what they believe should be priorities for police within their communities.
Crime reduction, community engagement, mental health/family violence, and enhancing road safety are the top main focuses for Kneehill County’s RCMP detachments.
Mental health is an ever increasing concern, especially in rural areas.
There is a new Regional Police and Crisis Team (RPACT) that will be made available to the county to help assist with mental health calls. It will be made up of an officer and a health practitioner to help better address what exactly it is a person in crisis needs.
Three Hills’ short-staffed RCMP detachment loses a member if they have to transport someone to Red Deer, where wait times are on average ten hours, causing a huge strain on the RCMP’s resources. RPACT will help ease this strain.
Property crimes are trending down in Kneehill County. In Beiseker, Break and Enters (B&E’s) are up 24 per cent in 2023, with five more occurring than in 2022. Theft of Motor Vehicles (TMV’s) is down nine per cent, with two fewer thefts than the previous year, and Theft Under (TU) $5000 is down 36 per cent with 27 fewer incidents.
Olds B&E’s and TMV’s statistics are down by over 30 per cent for both, and TU is down by 29 per cent.
Three Hills is down across all three categories, with TMV’s down 34 per cent, the highest of the detachments involved.
Although crime is decreasing across the County, RCMP still receive over 200 calls a month. A bigger policing presence and community engagement are very important to the RCMP. They will be offering workshops in Olds that will be posted on Kneehill County’s social media pages when they become available.
“In reality, we don’t do this enough. Everybody is busy but our phone is always on and our door is always open,” says Harms at the end of the meeting. “And, thank you for your comments and support. It means a lot to us.”
