Windsor Police Takeover On Schedule

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am800 reported the deadline for the Windsor Police Service to takeover policing in Amherstburg is quickly approaching and Chief Al Frederick says everything is on schedule.

I’m not sure why implementing a schedule as planned is newsworthy.

According to the article, ‘Over the course of the contract the town will save $14-million and an additional $2-million to $3-million in pensions and benefits.’

I’m also not sure why the projected savings are repeated when, in my opinion, they are minimal and an OPP switch might have reduced the policing costs significantly.

Unfortunately, council did not follow up on its motions to obtain an OPP costing so we’ll never know. But we do know how much other municipalities pay for policing.

Windsor Police Issues Third Letter Re Denial of Policing Proposal Request

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Windsor Police Service’s denial to the proposal in its entirety is under Appeal with the Information and Privacy Commission Ontario.

Windsor Police has issued a third letter, this time enclosing an Index of the 57 pages and the corresponding sections of the Act that it deems applicable.

Just to recap:

Mayor DiCarlo advised me the Windsor response would be made public.

Paula Parker, Town Clerk, advised I would have to request it from Windsor.

Windsor Police advised I had to file an FOI request.

Windsor Police denied access to the proposal in its entirety, citing exemptions.

Windsor Police issued a second letter with added reasons to deny the request.

Windsor Police issued a third letter with an index of the reasons for its complete denial.

How does transparency and accountability apply when information is not released?

Police Promotions Probed At Human Rights Hearing

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The Windsor Star reported Windsor Police Staff Sgt. Christine Bissonnette continued to lay out the parameters of her human rights’ complaint on Wednesday including allegations of gender bias, discrimination, ageism and harassment against senior ranks of the Windsor Police Service.

In response to the OCPC  investigation into Windsor Police, CBC News reported, “Complaints in the field [of policing] are inherent so I can’t say I’m surprised. The Town of Amherstburg​’s police force has had complaints. This is what happens in the business. We’d like to know what the complaints are and the details behind them,” DiCarlo said.

Regarding the same topic, the Windsor Star reported, “They are just complaints, Const. Shawn McCurdy, president of the Amherstburg Police Association, said Monday. “I bet if you went to every police service in the province, you’d find internal complaints.”

That’s right – discrimination, ageism, harassment, questionable hirings and promotions have occurred in Amherstburg, all of which are serious allegations. Shame on anyone who accepts them as the norm.

Retired Brentwood head implores council to end police “old boys’ club”

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The Windsor Star reported Lawyer Dan Soulliere, former executive director of Brentwood Recovery Home, sent city councillors a letter last month imploring them to ask questions about the promotional system, leadership and oversight of the service. He said human rights complaints that triggered an investigation of the service underway by a provincial watchdog agency should give councillors reasons for concern.

Accessibility Issues With Candidates’ Websites 2018

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Here we go again. Candidates want to reach as many voters as they can with their promises and platforms and are increasingly relying on social media to do so.

However, just like the previous campaign, there are website accessibility issues.

If so little thought is given to being inclusive, how will these candidates indicate their commitment to identifying, removing, and preventing barriers and comply with legislation?