The City of Richmond is concerned that a new federal policing policy, that requires RCMP auxiliary officers to be directly supervised at all times, will affect community police services.
“There is expected to be a significant impact to crime prevention programs, many community events, and the number of volunteer hours contributed overall,” wrote Steve Ilott, the coordinator of auxiliary constable program, in a report to the safety committee Tuesday.
The change was precipitated by the Oct. 22 attacks in Ottawa on the National War Memorial and Parliament Hill.
Auxiliary officers are volunteers and do not carry firearms. In 2013 the constables provided 8,189 hours of service such as block watch, traffic assistance, speed watch, and crime prevention canvassing.
Under the new rules there are fewer opportunities for auxiliary constables as regular members are not always available for such non-emergency services.
When the changes came into effect last November Richmond saw a 50 per cent dip in volunteer hours over the same month in 2013.
In 2014 police attended 50 community events, 29 of which used auxiliary constables under indirect supervision.
Council plans to voice their concerns via letters to all stakeholders.
